Eye of Heaven
by Purin-Puririn
Summary: She was used by the one she trusts. Her world was lost in one night until nothing could be seen through her eyes, aside to hatred. She crossed path with someone who search the same thing she is, the truth. Will she allow herself to trust someone again?
1. Chapter 1

**Hello, everyone! This is my first ever Fullmetal Alchemist fanfic, but I hope it's not lame or bad or boring or, well, you get the idea. Now, before I start I think it's fair to tell you that this story doesn't really use the original story line, it kind of happens between events. And another important thing for you to know is that I'm doing this fanfic based on the anime Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood.**

**Why?**

**Because I understand the anime better than the manga. I'm sorry if you don't like the anime series! I'll try and make one that's based on the manga once I fully understand it. But before you jump to any conclusions, please read this chapter and review it if you'd like...**

**And most importantly, please enjoy this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood!  
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**Chapter 1**

It was raining, no, _pouring _might be more suitable for the moment. The moon was hidden by the dark rain clouds, and the streets were left to be swallowed by the shadows. That house was supposed to be filled with laughter, but it was cracked. The cries of a little girl couldn't even be heard because of the roaring storm.

"_Alice_…My sweet little _Alice_…"

"Let go of me!"

The man was pinning the little girl to the ground with one hand as he held a knife in the other. His face was decorated by a wide maniacal grin and half of it was painted with tints of crimson.

The sound of a creaking door being opened was heard, followed by soft footsteps approaching the scene. A young boy with short messy dark hair and forest green eyes stepped out of the shadows. He was gasping for breath and was wearing a white shirt with short black pants. He caught his breath before widening his eyes as he stared at the scene before him, "Father, what are you doing to Alice?"

The man looked up and, if it was possible, his grin widened. "Seth, perfect timing, would you mind helping me a bit?" He looked back down towards the girl, "Alice doesn't seem to like this game"

The girl struggled against the man's tight hold, trying her best to ignore the crimson liquid that continues to flow down her pure white dress in an endless streak. She looked up towards the young boy with a pleading look as her tears rolled down her tainted face, "Seth…"

The boy narrowed his eyes before stepping forward, "Father, please stop! You're hurting her!" He skidded towards his father and grab hold of his right hand, trying to take away the knife he was holding on to so dearly, receiving a cut on his cheek and abdomen before being thrown towards the wall.

"You can't take her now…" The man said with pure excitement and joy in his voice. He looked back down towards the girl and raised the knife high above his head before bringing it down with full force, "She's nearly complete!"

"AAAAHH!" She screamed loudly when the knife was brought down to her abdomen and moved all the way to her right arm.

The girl's head fell slightly as she gazed down, she could see that every ounce of white was taken away from her dress, replaced by crimson and brownish color because of her blood and the wet ground she was being pinned against. Her breathing began to grow weary as the air around her turned heavy.

She held back her scream when the knife was pulled out roughly. She felt her own heartbeat began to race against her breath as she watched the tainted knife being lifted high above her again, she couldn't even move at the moment.

The man grinned devilishly, "We'll start"

Sparks of light surrounded the room like lightning in a storm, the boy winced slightly before regaining some of his consciousness. The girl threw her head back and screamed loudly as a new source of pain made its way through her. The boy gritted his teeth before trying to get back to his feet, his father…grinned in satisfaction to his creation.

"Don't worry, Alice… It's almost finished, you'll see…"

The boy held back his own body weight with one leg before glaring at his father, "Alice!"

_Crimson…Everything I saw was either tainted, or covered in crimson liquid, whether they were _my_ blood, _Seth's_…or _father's_. I couldn't tell anymore…_

_But then, I saw something else, a _gate_, and nothing else but white as far as my eyes would visualize. "Oh...What do we have here? A cute little girl came for a visit" The gate opened and black thin arms began to reach out for me and I didn't even have enough strength to bring myself up to panicking, after that…I lost my senses._

_When I came to, we were running, and the house was in a far distance._

The boy ran. He ran as fast as he could, the small girl on his back. He fought back the urging wind as he tasted salty rain water in his mouth. His eyes were narrowed but he could barely see through the darkness. He could feel the girl's warm breath against his neck, he could even hear her still racing heartbeat against the sound of his footsteps and the rain.

"...Seth…" Her voice was as soft as ever, but the fear and sadness in her tone was clear.

The boy turned around the corner before glancing back towards the girl, "What is it?"

"It was so dark…" She said solemnly. Her eyes were gazed at a distance, "Why is it so dark?" She mumbled softly as she leaned against the boy's back.

Seth raised an eyebrow at her, "Alice, what are you talking about? There are still some lights here, it can't be that dark"

She shook her head, "Not here…Back in the house. There was something there…it was so dark…and it felt so hollow" She whimpered slightly as her grip on the boy's clothes tightened, "It was scary"

Seth narrowed his eyes before looking back straight ahead, "I'm sorry Alice…for everything father did. I couldn't stop him but…" He glanced back at her with a softer look to calm the girl, "You'll be alright. I won't let anything or anyone else hurt you again, okay?"

Alice smiled softly before nodding, "Okay…" Even though she said that, a small part of her was screaming and telling her that this was going to haunt her forever.

Seth gazed down to his feet as he waited impatiently for any reports from the nurses of how Alice was doing. Some of the nurse would glance at him and gave him a pitied look, but other than that…nothing.

He had to wait in the waiting room while Alice was placed in the emergency room to be taken care of. The sky was dark and the lightning could be seen clearly through the glass window that took over an entire wall next to him.

"Seth"

He looked up and saw the doctor looking at him. "How is she?" He asked impatiently, clearly worried of the small girl's well being.

The doctor smiled slightly, "She'll live" Seth sighed in relieve when the doctor said that. He furrowed his eyebrows, "You can sleep in the same room she's in. There are two beds there, it won't be good for you to stay awake all night" The doctor said as the nurses began leaving the room Alice was currently resting in.

Seth hesitated for a bit before nodding. He stood but was quickly stopped by one of the nurses, "I think you might want to change your clothes first…" She said gesturing towards the ragged clothes the boy was wearing. "I've prepared them for you, please change before you sleep, alright?"

"…Alright"

Seth lied down on the bed while gazing up the ceiling with an empty look. He was wearing plain white top and equally white and plain pants. His bed was placed near the window and Alice's was placed closer to the door. Their beds were supposed to be separated by a curtain but Seth let the curtain to be folded, so he could gaze at the girl easily.

He looked to the side and saw Alice was already vast asleep and bandages were wrapped around her wounds, half of her face was also bandaged, the left half. He turned from his normal position so that he'd be lying on his side, making it easier for him to look at the girl.

"Alice" He narrowed his eyes as he recalled what had happened in their house earlier. He sighed before closing his eyes, "The military will be sending their dogs to get us for sure" He said to himself before he drifted away into sleep.

_I won't let them take you Alice… I promised I'd protect you, and I will.  
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"She was used in a human transmutation, that's more than enough reason for us to take her back to central" The dark haired man said as he gazed at Seth.

Seth narrowed his eyes, "What happened to me and my sister in none of your concern…I won't let you take her"

The man sighed before looking back at the boy with narrowed eyes and a serious look, "I can't blame you if you wish to protect your sister, considering what's happened to her… But you need to understand the fact that the military will be more than capable of helping her recover" He said while hoping in his heart that the boy would just cooperate so he could get it over with.

Seth narrowed his eyes and sent the man an exactly same look, "And I don't think you understand the fact that she also needs me to stay with her. Our father is gone and our mother...died a long time ago, I'm the only family she has left"

"But don't you understand what could happen to her in her current state?" The man paused and examined the boy's expression before continuing. "The transmutation your father did is unknown to the military, so no one has a clue as to what it's capable of. In her current state, she's still unstable and far too dangerous to be left unguarded"

Seth turned quiet and let the fact entered his mind before a sigh escaped his lips. _'I know he was going to say that…But even if I knew, I still can't change the fact that he's right. Her condition is probably getting worse, and only father knows how to finish that transmutation, but if there's a small possibility to change her back…'_

"How do I know she won't be harmed?" He said as he began putting his mind together at his probable decision, one that he hoped he won't regret later on.

The man pulled out a semi-smirk, "You're a very protective brother, aren't you?"

"Brother?" Seth looked up and saw Alice walked out of her room, a blanket covering her small frame. She was still wearing the white hospital clothes and all of her bandages were still there. She furrowed her eyebrows when she caught a glimpse of the man in uniform, "Seth, who is he?"

Seth gave the man a slight glance before taking a deep breath. He opened his forest green eyes and looked at the girl with an unreadable expression, "He's from the military…" He paused before continuing his sentence, "And we're going to have to stay with him for a while…His name is Mustang, Roy Mustang"

"_We_?" Alice repeated.

"We" He clarified.

"_We_?" Roy said, cutting in on the conversation.

Seth sighed again before once again repeating himself, "We" He sent the man a murderous gaze, one that says, _'I don't trust my sister's life in the hands of the military. So it's either I come along or she won't be going anywhere'_

Roy couldn't help but smirked in the boy's behavior, _'He'd actually go to all that trouble just for her?' _He shook his head lightly before rubbing the back of his neck, "I don't mind taking you along but, I'm not sure the Fuhrer will allow-"

"I can do alchemy" The boy said, cutting the man's sentence.

Roy raised a perfectly arched eyebrow, "You can?"

He shrugged, "I learned from my father… He wanted me to be a state alchemist" He glanced back towards his sister, "Right, Alice?"

The girl smiled softly and nodded. She turned around and saw a nurse calling her, she looked back towards her brother. "I better go. Tell me the rest later, alright, Seth?"

"Sure" And with that, she ran back towards the nurse's aide.

"...That's your sister?" Roy asked, earning a look from Seth before he sighed.

"Yes... She doesn't look like me, does she?" He looked at Roy from the corner of his eye seeing him nod. He looked back towards Alice and his gaze turned softer, "She used to have dark hair and green eyes as well, that is until…that transmutation. Her appearance changed completely, even her skin tone changed"

"Actually, that's not what I meant. Well, the fact that she doesn't look like you is true but, what I was really wondering is… Why does she…" He paused before looking back towards the girl's back, "…looks like a-"

"Don't say it!"

_Alice…I did it sweetheart! Aren't you happy for me?_

_I've done what others couldn't have done before! I opened the gate and gave it to you…the entire reward. You'll use it in your alchemy, won't you?_

**Yes, and now_..._**

**I'm begging you all! Please stay with the story and review! Please! Please! PLEASE!... Ehm... Yes, please.**

**If you noticed the title, it might sound weird but it actually explains most of the story and you might even figure out what happened to Alice and what will happen later on... It all depends on your talent in observing... And staying patient as to stay with the rest of the story :)**

**I'm desperate here! Please review...**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello! For those of you who kindly decided to stay with the story...are always count as wonderful people in my book! In any case, this chapter already brings us to the present, and by that I mean there's Ed, Al, and others you'd recognize from the anime.**

**I always like it when people would enjoy my stories because...basically it is to entertain people, isn't it? Please enjoy this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood!  
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**Chapter 2**

Ed sighed deeply before throwing himself comfortably on Roy's couch, "That was tiring!"

"You always say that as an excuse to barge in to my office" Roy said, clearly annoyed by the blonde haired boy's presence.

He smirked, "Yeah, can't argue with you there"

"So, how was it? Was it real this time?" Roy asked without looking up towards the boy and placing all his attention to the paperwork that's been piling up in his office since the last 10 hours he spent taking care of some other business Ed managed to get for him.

Ed sighed in annoyance, "No… The philosopher stone's supposed to be perfect, the one that guy had, broke into tiny little pieces just because it fell!"

"…That's a disappointment" He said without even showing any interest in the topic.

Ed banged his head against the small table in front of him and grunted, "When the hell are we going to actually find some clue about that damn stone! It's not like it's _that_ hard to find the ultimate alchemical discovery, is it?"

'_When is this boy going to stop bringing me into his business?'_ Roy paused in his movement before something appeared in his head, a thought, one that he wished he never thought of.

Of course, Ed noticed when the colonel suddenly stared into space and decided to ask, exactly what the man was afraid he'd do. "Is there something in your mind, Colonel?"

"…No, it's nothing"

Before he knew it, Ed was already standing in front of his desk with his arms crossed, waiting for the man to answer, "C'mon, Colonel, you wanted to say something, didn't you?"

"No, I didn't" He defended himself, poorly if a point has to be made.

Ed sighed again, "Fine, then I guess I'm just going to stay here…and bother you until I'm bored" He said as he leaned back against the man's desk and tugging on the stack of paperwork that's itching to fall off the surface of the desk.

Roy stiffened before pausing. He placed down his pen and sighed before he looked up towards Ed, "Do you remember that state alchemist I mentioned to you? The _'Crimson Eyed Alchemist'_, the one named Seth?

"Oh, yeah, the guy's supposed to be three year older than me" Ed answered as he recalled the memory.

"Yeah… There's a reason why he was given that title" Roy tapped his finger against his desk as he recalled the Fuhrer's words, "He was skilled in transmutation, and was taught how to do successful human transmutations by his father...who is currently dead"

Ed raised his eyebrows slightly, "So, this guy's supposed to know something about human transmutations?"

"And the Philosopher Stone" He added. "Though I doubt you'll be able to get the information out of him, he doesn't really open up much"

"Heh, don't worry about that. I can manage" He narrowed his eyes before his smirk widened, "Just tell me where this guy Seth's supposed to be"

The boy leaned back against the wall behind him while his eyes were locked to the alchemy book in his hand. He was wearing a long brown coat and was bringing a suitcase with him. His messy dark hair was shadowing his forest green eyes as he gazed down.

He narrowed his eyes, "Damn it" He cursed before he searched through his pocket and pulling out a small piece of paper. He unfolded it and read the horrible hand writing before sighing, "I forgot to get Alice that special part she needed for her experiment. She's going to be pissed when she finds out…"

He crumbled the piece of paper in his grip, and opening it again to reveal a neatly folded origami bird. He shrugged before letting the paper be blown by the breeze, _'Hope she doesn't mind'_

He stood straight and turned to leave the station...after a short visit to the café to buy breakfast.

Seth munched on the piece of bread as he continued to walk down the street, still completely focused on his book, makes you wonder how he doesn't bump into anyone without even looking at the road. He munched on the bread before muttering a person's name that was written on the book, "Dr. Marcoh" He swallowed the bread before smirking, "So this guy knows about the Philosopher Stone, huh?"

He stopped in his step before turning, a public telephone caught his sight. He walked towards it and walked in before dialing the number. The tone was stable and short before someone on the other line answered, _"Hello?"_

"Yo, guess who?"

The sound of the girl's giggles could be heard from the phone, _"Am I talking to my stupid, idiotic, reckless, and lazy brother? Who was supposed to be here hours ago…?"_

"Well, when you put it that way, I'm not sure either to say _'yes'_ or _'no'_ but, yeah, sorry about that" He said while rubbing the back of his neck. "Listen, there's something I want to know about. It's a guy that used to study the Philosopher Stone some time ago, Dr. Marcoh"

"_Dr. Marcoh? I think I've heard of him before, he left Central a long time ago… What do you want to know about him?"_

"Everything" He said in a normal tone as if it was a light request.

"…_That's so expected of you"_ The girl sighed at the other end of the phone before she spoke again, _"Fine, I'll have the documents ready by the time you're back"_

"Thanks, bye"

"_Bye…"_

The boy sighed before he hung up on the phone and stepping out, back on the crowded streets. He rubbed his head before turning back slightly, he sweat dropped when the sight of a giant armor hiding in the bushes was in his vision. "What the…?"

"See brother? I told you I'm too big to hide behind this bush! You're just so small so you can actually hide your entire body behind the-"

"Shut up, Al!"

Seth raised an eyebrow when the blonde haired boy finally stepped out of the bushes, his arms crossed and a very pissed off look on his face. He looked at them questioningly, _'Who the hell are these two?'_ He furrowed his eyebrows, _'And that blonde kid is…a runt'_

He looked at the boy questioningly when the…blonde runt looked at him with narrowed eyes, "Are you Seth?" He hesitantly nodded when he realized something awfully familiar about the boy.

"Is there something you need from me?"

Roy made his way through the hallways before stopping in front of a door. He knocked on it softly before taking hold of the handle and opening the door. He narrowed his eyes when some of the dust managed to enter his nose, _'How can that girl work in this place?'_

The room was large but thanks to all the mountains of books and papers there, the room seemed so small. The large window that nearly took over one of the walls was also not helping since all the light was just being blocked and in result giving the room a slightly poor effect.

Roy's eye twitched slightly, "Alice, are you even in here?"

He sighed when he didn't receive any respond, _'So she's out. Wonder where, maybe she already went home'_ He thought to himself before turning around and leaving the room, closing the door shut behind him. If he had stayed longer, he would've heard the soft mumbles coming from the other side of the room, and he might catch a glimpse of the person waking up.

The girl rubbed her tired eye before sitting up, the books falling slightly when they were tugged. The small girl yawned and stretched up her hands before looking to the side with a sleepy look, "Was that Roy?"

Roy walked through the halls again as he made his way towards his office while rubbing his temples as he lost himself in his own thoughts, _'Was it wise to tell Fullmetal about Seth?' _He narrowed his eyes, _'Well, as long as he doesn't know about Alice…it might be alright'_

He looked up and raised his eyebrows slightly when a familiar boy walked up towards him. The boy also raised his eyebrows at the sight of the man, "Roy"

"Seth"

There was a moment of silence before Seth sighed, "You told Fullmetal about me?"

"Yes" Roy answered simply.

Seth rubbed the back of his neck before looking back at Roy with a dumbfounded look, "Do I want to know the reason why you told the guy who's crazy about the Philosopher Stone about me? Which might end up with him knowing about my sister as well?"

Roy sweat dropped, basically the reason he told him was so that he could get some peace from his constant complaints, that's not a very good reason, is it? "…Probably not" He thought for a moment before looking back at him, "I'm guessing you already met him" He nodded, causing Roy to furrow his eyebrows, "What did he say?"

He smirked and scratched his chin, "Well, he didn't exactly waste any time, he just asked me straight forward what I knew about the Philosopher Stone" Roy sighed, it was so like him. Seth continued, "I didn't exactly tell him much, I just told him I got everything I know about the Philosopher Stone from my father…and my little sister"

Roy widened his eyes, "Y-You told him what? I thought you said you didn't want him to know about her!"

"Calm down Roy" He said while holding out both his hand with a casual look. He grinned, "I did say that but, basically it would be interesting for her to actually meet someone like that shrimp. Besides…" He scratched his cheek and looked away, "I doubt he'll be able to recognize Alice as _my_ sister. Just as you weren't even able to tell either when you first saw her"

"…True"

The girl staggered slightly before standing up, placing both palms on the table to stable her. She yawned before finally standing straight, she scratched the back of her neck before looking towards the window.

"Brother…" She narrowed her eyes as a dark look appeared on her face, "What kind of trouble did he drag me into this time?"

**Bad? Horrible? Weird?**

**Please tell me all your complaints and comments in your much appreciated and hoped reviews... Please Review!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello, everyone! So, I wasn't expecting people to actually be interested in this so I was really surprised when I managed to get your attentions. So, special thanks towards the people below!**

**Alice Nyte (Heheh... The name is also Alice...)**

**Black Rose**

**Pyon-chan (I like your pen name, it's cute!)**

**Cursed Bunny**

**And here is a special thanks to one of you who helped me a lot by telling me how to actually use punctuations... Seriously the word sounds funny when you keep saying it over and over again with different voices, I dare you to try!**

**Well, anyways, some of you...well, almost all of you were pretty much curious about what Alice looks like, right? Well, there was supposed to be a surprise but I decided not to use it and just plainly use it as an insult for Alice in the later chapters. But don't worry, I described how she looks like here, though I had two versions of her and this one was my second version, hope not the bad one. Now, Please enjoy this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood!  
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**Chapter 3**

"Wow, what happened to Ed?" Hughes asked towards Roy as he stared at the blonde haired boy who was scowling and at the same time glaring towards the innocent table.

Roy sighed, "They had a little fight with Seth."

"Seth?" Hughes looked at Ed with disbelief before looking back at Roy, "Why?"

He looked back at Hughes with a blank look, "Does the name _Alice_ give you any clue?"

"Oh…" he glanced back towards the scowling boy before moving a bit closer towards Roy. He leaned to the side and whispered in his ear, "Roy, were they looking for that Philosopher Stone thing again?"

"…Yeah."

…**Meanwhile, on the other side of HQ.**

The small girl walked down the hallways while bringing the stack paperwork in her hand carefully. She had short dark blue hair with slightly long bangs and was wearing the uniform that was supposed to be a boy's uniform, though she doesn't seem to be fazed by this fact. Another noticeable thing about her is the eye patch covering her left eye, and her right eye that wasn't covered was in the color of soft lavender.

She stopped and looked right and left towards the two hallways before furrowing her eyebrows, _'Damn it, I forgot where his office was'_ She thought for a moment before finally sighing and turning left, _'Well, I suppose making wild guesses won't hurt right now'_

She gazed down at her feet for a while. She stopped and narrowed her eyes before bringing her hand up to her forehead, "Of all times for a headache, why do I have to have it when I'm lost?"

She grunted before looking up and widening her eyes slightly when the sight of a man in uniform turned around a nearby corner. She panicked a bit before hiding around the corner while holding her breath. A drop of cold sweat rolled down her face, _'Oh, man! I can't believe I still get cold feet whenever the Fuhrer comes around!'_

"Who's there?"

She stiffened before turning around and saw that the Fuhrer was peeking around the corner. He stared at her for a bit before smiling warmly, "Ah, Lockhart, I see you still like wearing the boy's uniform instead of the one for girls, though basically the only difference is the skirt and pants."

She chuckled nervously, "Heheh… I don't really like wearing short skirts, especially tight ones…sir."

He nodded, "Alright then. Now, where are you going? You're not lost again, are you?"

"O-Of course not, sir!" _'Who the hell am I kidding? Of course I'm lost!'_ she shuddered slightly as the words flow out. She smiled and scratched the back of her head, "I think I better be going now, sir. Please excuse me!" she said before turning around and running down the hallway and making a random turn at the nearest corner.

She stopped and listened closely for the Fuhrer's footsteps, waiting for them to disappear. Once they did, she sighed heavily before falling to the ground, "The Fuhrer is so weird at times…"

She opened her eyes and stared at the wall in front of her. She narrowed her eyes, _'Why am I always so anxious around him?'_

_You can't run away… You know it, and _he_ knows it…_

She narrowed her eyes before shaking her head lightly. She sighed again before standing up and fixing the stack of paperwork back in order. She sneezed and rubbed her itchy nose, "Ugh… Did I catch a cold?" She slapped herself and shook her head before picking up the paperwork, "I have to hurry if I want to find that stupid office!"

She began running down the hallways again, praying in her mind she'll be lucky enough to run into an alchemist that might be able to help her. As if hearing her prayer, when she turned around the corner she accidentally crashed into someone.

She fell back to her backside and winced in pain at the impact; she opened her left eye and paled at the sight of all the papers that were scattered on the ground…maybe this is just plain bad luck.

"Damn it!"

She looked to the side and saw the person she bumped into, he was also on the ground. She raised her eyebrows slightly at the sight of him, he had blonde hair and she could see a glimpse of his golden orbs, since he wasn't facing her she couldn't get a full look at his face.

She merely blinked when he turned and glared at her, "Watch where you're going!"

…**Before.**

Ed threw his head back on the couch and gazed up the ceiling, "Al, you really think we should be wasting our time looking for this girl?"

"Why not?" Al answered simply.

Ed jumped up and looked at his brother with narrowed eyes, "What do you mean _'Why not?'_… We should be out there looking for the actual stone instead of wasting our time here trying to find a girl who just might know about it, and even if we do find her we don't have any guarantee if she'll help us."

Al's head fell slightly as he looked to the floor, "I suppose you're right…" He paused before looking back at Ed, "Maybe we should just leave again? I thought you wanted to get your automail fixed."

Ed paled and stiffened, "I can't really imagine what Winry would do when she sees this…"

The two brothers panicked slightly when the image of their childhood friend holding a wrench in her hand appeared in their minds, who know what she could do with it!

Ed gulped before taking a deep breath, "But I can't really do anything without my automail fixed first, right?"

He sighed when his brother nodded towards his question. He looked down to the floor and towards his feet, "Guess we should go now… We need to buy some train tickets first" He looked up towards Al with a smile, "Right?"

Al nodded, "Yeah…"

The two stood up and began walking towards the door, passing by the Roy's desk, the man was asleep on his desk and the two decided to just leave him be. Al shut the door closed behind them before trailing after his brother.

"Ed…" Al called out towards him, but only received a slight hum in response, guess that was good enough for him to know that he was listening. "I was wondering…about what Roy said"

Ed looked towards him from the corner of his eye, "What did he say?"

"You know, about Seth. He said he could do a successful human transmutation and the fact that he learned it all from his father, who is supposed to be dead, right?"

"…" Ed said nothing as he followed his brother's point of view in the matter.

Al continued, "So, is it possible that, maybe…he used his father in a transmutation?"

Ed sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, "There is a possibility in that but he doesn't really look like someone who would do that… And I doubt he'd pull it off"

Al just nodded in his brother's statement, it was actually true. Seth maybe a bit of a…rapscallion, but he had a good heart, it would be hard to imagine him doing such a thing to someone so close to him like his own father.

The two turned quiet after that, no more comment or questions, they just walked. Ed wasn't really paying attention to where he was going since his mind was somewhere far away from reality so when he turned around the corner, he didn't see the person bringing a stack of paperwork with them who clearly can't see where they were going either. In result, the two crashed.

Papers were scattered all over the place as the two fell back on their backside, the person hit the floor harder than Ed did. Ed cursed while rubbing his head, "Damn it!"

When he looked up again he saw…a girl. He narrowed his eyes and glared at her, "Watch where you're going!"

She merely looked at him in confusion before replying, "…S-Sorry…" He grunted before standing up and dusting his pants. "Ummm, excuse me…"

He turned back and saw the girl stood up before looking back at him with furrowed eyebrows, that was when he realized the eye patch she was wearing, "You're…arm" she pointed towards Ed's right arm. She tilted her head to the side and stared at him, "It's an automail?"

"Yeah..." Ed raised his eyebrows slightly, _'How did she-?'_

"Ed, are you alright?" Ed glanced back and saw Al running up towards him.

He merely nodded, "Yeah, I'm fine"

"You're the Fullmetal Alchemist, aren't you?" Ed turned again and saw that girl still looking at him… What is wrong with that girl? She narrowed her eyes, "And you're Alphonse"

"How did you know?" Al asked, clearly confused that the girl he never even seen before in his life actually knew him and his brother.

She blinked a couple of times before answering, "Oh, that… My brother told me a lot about you two, but not that much actually…"

Ed and Al stared at the girl suspiciously, making the situation a bit uncomfortable. The girl looked to the side a bit before coughing uncomfortably, "Ummm… Maybe I should introduce myself first."

"Yeah… Maybe that would make things better" Ed said without taking his gaze away from the girl.

She nodded; "Right" She brought up her hand and smiled slightly, "My name is Lockhart, Alice Lockhart"

The two boys widened their eyes when they heard her muttered her name. The girl merely smiled a rather friendlier smile before taking his hand and shaking it lightly, "It's a pleasure to meet you"

Al stared at the girl in disbelief before finding some of his voice back, "Is your brother-"

"Named Seth? Yes, yes he is. Seth Lockhart" she answered without waiting for Al to finish his question. She paused slightly before continuing, "My brother was the one that told me about you two" She rubbed the back of her neck, "This is kind of a big coincidence to suddenly run into you two but, my brother said you wanted to see me" The two was snapped out of their current trance when she said that.

"Yeah…"

"Well…" she crossed her arms over her chest as her smile disappeared and replaced by a neutral look, "Is there something you need from me?"

**…**

Seth yawned before a smirk spread across his face, "Seems like she found them" He turned and stared at the crimson ground before narrowing his eyes, _'Even after all this time…the crimson won't washed away…'_ His eyes narrowed even more when the sound of Alice's desperate cries resounded in his mind and pierced through his ear drums. _'…Father…Why her? Why did it have to be Alice?'_

**Ummm... I don't have much ideas about how they were supposed to meet so I just went with the plain classic, they bumped into each other, literally. As you probably remembered, in the summary I said something about Alice's eyes and now you know she wears an eye patch so, no, she most certainly is not blind. **

**Another thing I'd like to clarify is about Alice and Seth's last name. My friend came up with it and I liked it but then, she told me that she got the idea from Harry Potter... Honestly, I didn't know! I think the name suits Alice but it sounds a bit weird on Seth... Then again, what last name actually sounds perfect for Seth? But if you do know, just tell me, I might be able to use it for other fanfics.  
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**Please Review!**_  
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	4. Chapter 4

**Hello! Wow, this is a really early update for me, I just updated two days ago, right? Well, anyways here's the next chapter...there's not much of anything to say for me. Oh, I almost forgot! I'm in my school holidays now so I might be able to update way sooner than ever...might. But, if my family decides to go to my grandma's house then I might not be able to update...**

**For the time being, Please enjoy this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood  
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**Chapter 4**

"Congratulations!" Seth said happily while clapping his hands. He was sitting across from the two brothers, who still had a surprised look on their faces, while his sister sits next to him. Seth stopped and looked back towards the two, "So, how did you managed to find her?"

"We-" Al started but was finished by someone else.

"We bumped into each other on the hallway while I was bringing some off Roy's paperwork" Alice answered before taking a sip of the milk in her cup.

Seth looked at her for a moment before looking back at the Elrics, "Yeah… I figured you found her by accident, no one's ever been that lucky before though"

Alice nodded without looking at either of them. Seth coughed a bit, "So… Have you asked her yet? Knowing you two I was hoping you'd shove the question right away, but seeing that you told me to come here…" He glanced towards Alice, who in return merely shrugged. "I suppose you haven't even asked her at all"

"Ask me what?" Alice asked while looking at the two boys in front of her. She furrowed her eyebrows, "And why didn't you just ask earlier?"

"We…" Ed rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably before continuing, "Were worried we had the wrong person and that you were just pretending"

"What? Wait, why?"

The two paled and sweated. They glanced at each other before looking back at her, "Because…" They started the sentence together, and will end it the same way, "We thought you were a _boy_"

…**Flashback.**

"_Brother, are you sure that…_girl_, is Alice?" Al asked in whisper as the two of them faced away from the girl._

_Ed furrowed his eyebrows, "Yeah, I know what you mean"_

_The two turned and stared at the girl, who claimed to be Alice, she was still picking up the fallen paperwork. They narrowed their eyes, she had short boyish hair, she was wearing an eye patch that usually boys would only wear, there was no trail of feminine in her face, she was wearing the boy uniform, and…her chest was…_flat_._

_The two turned back with puzzles in their heads. They looked at each other before glancing back slightly, "So, do we ask…_her_, or not?" Al asked as he struggled to call the person a _'her'_ when that person was so much like a _'him'_._

_Ed narrowed his eyes dangerously before crossing his arms over his chest, "Well, maybe we should just ask Seth himself if _she_, is his sister. We can figure out if he's lying or not"_

_The two nodded simultaneously._

…**Back in the Present.**

Seth was sitting on the corner and was curled up into a ball with a dark aura was practically hovering over him. He whimpered slightly until his whole body was shaking, "Why does, everyone think my sister is a boy? So she wears a boy's uniform or maybe she wears an eye patch or maybe she doesn't like wearing makeup or anything girly or maybe…" The boy keeps listing all the reason why his sister was considered a boy while making the aura over him darker by the second.

Alice just gave her brother a side glance before looking back at the boys. She had her arms crossed, her feet over one another, and her eyes narrowed, "So… You thought I was a _boy_?"

The two felt chills went down their spine when the girl growled slightly like a predator, and unfortunately it seems like they were the prey. She sighed, "Well, I guess that's normal"

The two boys blinked, "What?"

She shrugged before looking to the side, "Everyone thinks I'm a boy other than the Fuhrer and my brother. But I don't really mind being called a boy, as long as they don't try and rub it in…"

"So, you really are Alice?" Ed asked, just…making sure.

She sighed again before looking at the boy in the eye, "Yes, I'm Alice, Alice Lockhart. If you want more specific identification, I'm an Intel in Alchemy and other subject that consist of them but…I don't do much Alchemy at all"

Ed raised an eyebrow, "What? How can you not know how to preform Alchemy but you're supposed to be one of the most knowing person about Alchemy here?"

She grunted and looked away; her cheeks were puffed and slightly red, "Fine! If you don't want my help, then I won't bother it anyway!"

"Wait a minute! That's not what I meant!" Ed said in slight panic. If she refused to help them, then it would've been a complete waste to even found her.

She looked back at him with a glare, "You're not a very nice person you know that, Edward?" She leaned forward and slammed her hands on the table, "Just because I said I don't do much of Alchemy, doesn't mean I don't know how to!"

Ed raised his eyebrows slightly, "…Oh…"

Alice stared at him golden orbs for a moment before widening her eyes and backing away. She seated herself back on the couch before bringing up her hand to her forehead and narrowing her eyes, _'Great! Not now! Please…'_

_Alice stared at the scene in disgust but at the same time…she wasn't bothered by it._

_The place was dark and reeks of the scent of blood. In the middle of the room could be seen a transmutation circle that was already filled with so much blood and a creature could be seen at the middle. She narrowed her eyes, "A human transmutation circle"_

"_Mommy! Alphonse!" She looked to the side and saw a boy with blonde hair on the ground near the edge of the circle. He was reaching out towards the creature but his eyes were filled with horror. Alice furrowed her eyebrows before glancing towards the boy's legs, or maybe _leg_ would be enough._

CLANG!

_A suit of armor crashed down on the floor. "Give him back… He's my only brother…" the boy muttered while drawing a symbol inside the suit of armor. "Take my arm; take my heart if you have to… Just give him back… Give me my little brother back!"_

_The boy clapped his hands together and the room was soon filled with light, so much that the view…disappeared._

Alice jumped slightly when two hands were placed on both her shoulders. She looked back and saw Seth smiling down towards her, "You shouldn't do that Alice you do know he didn't mean it."

Alice furrowed her eyebrows before looking back down towards her lap, "Sorry about that…Edward."

Ed raised an eyebrow at her sudden change of personality. He snapped out of his trance and asked, "So, do you mind if I ask you something…related to Alchemy?"

Alice stayed quiet and never lifted her gaze before speaking again; "The Philosopher Stone" Ed raised his eyebrows slightly. Alice looked up slightly from under her bangs, "You two…you're looking for the Philosopher Stone, aren't you?"

"How did you…" Al started the question but found that he himself was unable to finish it.

Seth let go of his sister and gazed down at her with narrowed eyes. He looked back up and saw Ed having the same expression as he was. Alice opened her mouth, "Your brother's armor…it's hollow, right?" She looked up completely and turned towards Al, "You just placed his soul in there… You might be able to create a Philosopher Stone of your own…" She was actually frightened at her own words.

Ed widened his eyes before a smile spread across his face, "So are you going to-"

"No" Alice looked back at Ed with an empty gaze before repeating herself, "No, I won't tell you anything about it"

Ed narrowed his eyes, "Why?"

Alice looked at him with narrowed eyes, "The Philosopher Stone, it's…it's a cursed stone, you shouldn't even be looking for such a thing"

Ed gritted his teeth, "What do you mean by that?"

Al looked towards his angered brother, _'Ed…'_

Alice stood and gazed towards Ed with an unfazed look, "It means exactly what it sounds like, if you're an Alchemist then you should know that in order to gain something and equal amount of sacrifice must be given in return!"

The two sent glares towards each other; Seth was kind of expecting this to happen while Al kept trying to calm his brother. Alice scoffed, "I don't have time to deal with you" she said before turning around, Seth trailed behind her.

"What about a _bet_?"

Alice stopped and turned towards Ed, who was being held back by his brother, but the look on his face was still there nonetheless. Alice raised an eyebrow, "What kind of a bet?"

"Oh, boy…" Seth muttered.

Ed smirked slightly, knowing that he managed to get the girl's attention, "You can test me in any way you like, one fight. If I win then you have to tell me everything you know about the Philosopher Stone"

"And if I win, what do I get?"

Ed's smirk widened, "Then I'll do whatever you want me to for the next two months"

Alice raised an eyebrow, "You're volunteering to be my slave?"

"If you can actually beat me"

Seth stared at the two, _'Damn it! Alice never backs down from a challenge, at least not when it's that kind of challenge…'_

Alice smirked devilishly, causing Ed's smirk to turn into the exact same one. She narrowed her eyes, "Fine, a fight it is. And you better not back down on that deal you said"

"Heh, I've been the military dog for years, I think I know how to keep my loyalty" Ed replied. He narrowed his eyes, "So, when is the fight?"

…**Later.**

"A fight? You're seriously going to fight the famous Fullmetal Alchemist?" Seth said while trailing behind his sister.

She sighed, "Well, it's the only way to keep him happy for the time being"

Seth narrowed his eyes, "Alice, what did you see this time exactly?"

Alice stopped in her step and glanced back towards Seth with furrowed eyebrows, "Ed's past… It's private"

"I see"

Alice looked back down towards her feet and recalled everything she saw, the blood stained floor and walls, the circle carved carefully on the floor, the creature lying in the middle of that circle, and the frightened Ed that was also covered in blood. She narrowed her eyes, _'He…tried to bring the dead back to life'_

"Brother" Alice called out towards him without glancing back.

"Yeah?"

"…Where were you?"

Seth raised an eyebrow, "What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean" She glanced back with narrowed eyes, "Yesterday, you went away again without telling me"

He looked at her for a moment before sighing. He walked pass her, "Somewhere"

**Okay... This chapter is very weird for me. So, just to make it clear, Alice does look like a boy. I made a picture of her and showed to my...story assistant, if you will call her, and her first impression was the fact that she looked more like a boy than a girl...I did not know how that happened. I am freaked out! Usually I can't draw boys... Oh, sure! When I want to draw boys I can't but when I wanted to draw a girl it comes out like a boy, thank you! I AM VERY PISSED ABOUT THIS!**

**Ehmm... Please ignore that. Now then, I kind of felt uncomfortable when writing this chapter, and I do not know why, so please point out if there were any flunkies or mistakes... heheh, flunkies...**

**Please Review!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello! Ehmmm... Now, then as you all know, I didn't write this story on my own, since my friend didn't like being called an assistant I'm just going to call her... What? I suppose 'Friend' is good enough, isn't it? Well, anyways, I'm thinking about posting some kind of interview chapter between my characters and me and *surprise* my friend will also be joining us, isn't that nice? The problem of getting her to get the interview done is the only thing to worry about at the moment...**

**Anyways, just so you know, I don't think I should be spoiling anything in general but if any of you feel like wanting some spoilers, feel free to contact me through private messages or reviews, I won't mind giving spoilers but, just so you know, this story is much more fun without any, and_ that_ is the truth. As always, Please enjoy this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood!  
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**Chapter 5**

"A fight? You and the, oh, so famous, Fullmetal Alchemist getting onto the middle of the official training grounds of the central HQ to fight in front of the entire central military and alchemists just so that you can either tell him about your research or not?"

"Yup"

The girl shook her head before leaning against the edge of her friend's table, "You do know that's pretty much suicide, right?"

"What makes you say that, Arra?" Alice asked innocently before placing the stack of documents back with the rest of the finished ones. She stretched her arms up before glancing back towards her friend, "I hope you're not implying that I'm weak in fights…"

She shrugged, "Can you blame me? I've never seen you fight once in my career of being here, heck I've never seen you held a gun before let alone use alchemy in battle…rephrase that, I've never seen you held a gun before let alone use alchemy for _anything_!"

Alice sighed before sitting down on her chair, "I've been hearing that excuse a lot…" She picked up a piece of paper before bringing it up to her eye level before a smirk spread across her face, "Guess you'll know how I fight tomorrow afternoon."

"What? Tomorrow? Afternoon? As in, tomorrow in the afternoon?"

Alice looked at her with a dumbfound look, "Yes, genius, that's what the statement _'tomorrow afternoon'_ means… Is there any questions or complaints?"

"Yes, there are!" Arra said before slamming her hands on Alice's desk. She narrowed her eyes, "One, tomorrow I have to go on a mission up on the south and at Briggs so the soonest I'll come back is probably a couple of days from now. Two, if you're fighting tomorrow…that means you don't have much time for any preparation!"

Alice sighed, "Will you calm down-?"

"No, I will most certainly not calm down!"

Alice took a deep breath before looking back at her with a soft smile, "Listen, Arra, when have I ever gone into a battle field without a plan before? Never… When have I ever try to just wing-it and let fate decide either I live in the end or not? Never… So, what makes you think that I'm doing all of this as a mindless attempt to keep him away from me?"

"…You do have a point…"

"Besides, if I wanted him to get off my back…I could've just asked my brother to do it, couldn't I?" Alice said before reading the first paper from the stack.

Arra looked at her for a moment before sighing in defeat, "Fine, but I expect you to still be well and breathing when I get back from my mission; got it?"

Alice smiled, "Thanks for trusting me, Arra."

"Yeah, yeah…" she said before waving and stepping out of the room. The door slammed closed and the noise was rebounded so it would ring in her ears loudly and disturbingly.

She smiled before sighing and shaking her head lightly, _'She worries too much at times…'_

She opened her eyes and gazed softly at the piece of paper before narrowing her eyes a moment later. The words written on the piece of paper began to move and shape different sentences. She furrowed her eyebrows before reading the upper part of the writings, "…Human Transmutation."

She narrowed her eyes dangerously before reading the rest of the writings, there were only a view parts which she found important. _'The gate… Truth… God… Alchemy…'_ She paused and stared at the one simple word with slight fear in her aching head, she gulped before a cold sweat rolled down her face, _'…Sacrifices…'_

"_Don't worry, Alphonse…"_

_Alice raised her head and widened her eyes slightly at the sudden change of scenery. She was standing in a large green meadow and a small house could be seen at the distance. She narrowed her eyes before walking forward, the sight of a boy sitting on a wheel chair and a suit of armor sitting behind him could be seen slowly coming into view._

_She stopped a couple of feet away from them and watched the young Ed turned the pages of his book. He trailed his fingers on the page's surface before narrowing his eyes slightly, "It says here that…the Philosopher Stone might be able to give you your body back, Al. We'll just have to find one stone and we can go back to normal."_

_She widened her eyes at his words, "No…" She took a step forward and stopped when she was finally standing right in front of the boy, "Why would you…look for such a thing?" she said in futile since it was obvious he wouldn't be able to hear her. She narrowed her eyes before whimpering slightly, "Edward… Alphonse… I can't let you two find the secret of that stone, if you do…"_

Alice gasped and widened her eyes before a drop of cold sweat dripped down her neck. She furrowed her eyebrows before opening her palm, a pack of ash lied on it instead of her previous work. She sighed, "Damn it… I hate it when that happens…"

'…_I can't lose tomorrow…I just can't'_ She lied down on her desk and pouted while glaring straight ahead, "Seth… What the heck is taking you so long?"

**With Seth**

Seth pulled up his scarf before trying to breathe calmly and he could see the white cloud formed by his own cold breath. His eye twitched slightly, "I hope Alice is having a blast…" he said while smiling at his own current misery.

He looked up and furrowed his eyebrows, "Their fight is tomorrow, and it'll still be freezing by then…" Seth narrowed his eyes before looking back straight ahead, _'Alice… You better have a plan whether you lose to him or not.'_

"Sorry, were you waiting long?" He looked to the side and saw the face of a certain dark haired man's smirking face. Roy's smirk widened, "Are you feeling cold? You look as pale as a ghost right now."

Seth sighed before crossing his arms over his chest, "Well, did you find it or not? Basically if you didn't I'm pretty sure that Alice is going to kill you."

Roy paled before nodding, "Yeah, guess it's a good thing that I found it" he said before pulling out a small brown box from his jacket's pocket.

Seth smirked before taking the box and opening it, "Hmmm… I'll never understand how she uses that weird alchemy of hers…"

"Technically, the reason she can do it is because of that human transmutation your father did, isn't it?" Roy pointed out before sitting down on a nearby bench.

Seth looked down to his feet before nodding, "Guess you're right" He walked and seated himself next to Roy, "Don't you find it weird why my father even did that transmutation on her? He gave away his soul and handed everything down to her, and that transmutation wasn't even completed yet."

Roy narrowed his eyes before placing his chin on his palm, "That's true, and to be honest…" He felt chills go down his spine at the memory of him fighting her personally, "She's a bit scary when she's serious about fighting… Should we tell Fullmetal that?"

"Hmmm… Nah, he can figure it out himself…" Seth smirked, "The hard way that is."

**The Next Day**

"Ugh… I'm still sleepy…" Alice mumbled softly as she buried her head in the pile of paperwork placed on her desk. She grunted, "Why does the sun have to set so soon? Can't it wait a bit longer?"

Seth sighed and crossed his arms over his chest, "C'mon Alice, the fight is going to start soon, if you don't show up you'll be count as lose…" Seth rubbed the back of his neck before looking away, "Then you'll have no choice but to tell them about the Philosopher Stone, remember?"

Alice snapped her eyes wide open before standing up with narrowed eyes, "Let's go."

Seth smirked before turning around and walking towards the door. "Here" Seth threw the brown box Roy gave him yesterday towards Alice before glancing back, "He found it in his house, you left it there, right?"

Alice looked at the box for a moment before shrugging, "I don't really remember."

…

"So, this fight was actually allowed by the Fuhrer?" Roy asked as he stared at Ed with wide eyes.

Ed nodded, "Yeah, he said something about he wanted to see Alice fight and blah… blah… blah…"

Roy sweat dropped, "And I'm guessing you're not worried by the least of how she fights?"

"I don't know, maybe" he said calmly with a shrug.

"Well aren't you the confident one?" Ed and Roy both turned around and saw Alice walking up towards them, Seth was already standing next to the Fuhrer and Al. Alice stopped once she was in front of Roy before smiling, "So, you really think you can beat me?"

Ed smirked, "We'll find out, won't we?"

Ed turned and began walking towards the middle of the training grounds, Alice was about to follow when someone grabbed her wrist and causing her to turn to meet Roy's gaze. He narrowed his eyes, "You're just going to use that one, right?"

She smiled before taking back her hand, "Don't worry, colonel, I won't go overboard in this fight, at least I'm not planning to…"

Roy sighed before turning around and walking back towards Seth, "…Hope so" he muttered softly under his breath.

Alice pulled out the brown box before opening it and taking the item inside, she held the item firmly in her hand before throwing the box away. She looked down and saw a pair of white gloves on her palm, _'I haven't used these in a while, wonder if I can still use it…'_ She shrugged before slipping her fingers into both gloves and pulling the end to steady it.

She furrowed her eyebrows before stretching her arms above her head, "I hate wearing gloves!"

Ed gazed at the girl across from him with narrowed eyes, "She uses gloves in her transmutation?"

…

The two stood across from each other, both in their stance and both their eyes were narrowed in concentration. The edges of the training grounds were filled and covered with rows of people in military uniforms. Al, Seth and the Fuhrer were watching from the top of the surveillance tower.

The Fuhrer smiled before speaking, "Begin!"

Ed narrowed his eyes before clapping his hands together and turning his automail into a blade, "You should know, considering the price of this fight, I'm not going to hold back against you!" he said before jumping forward, missing her by an inch when she jumped back.

Alice smirked before landing on her feet, "I'd feel insulted if you do!" She jumped forward and clapped her hands together before slamming them to the ground. A large explosion occurred and smoke soon covered the entire training grounds.

Ed narrowed his eyes before covering his nose and looking around. He narrowed his eyes even more when the sound of metal being clashed and steam was heard. He looked down and widened his eyes before quickly jumping back and exiting the cloud of smoke.

He gritted his teeth and gazed down at his automail, it was red and burned. He calmed down when the heat began to die down and his automail turned back to its normal temperature.

_SNAP!_

He looked up and raised his eyebrows slightly when the smoke dispersed. Alice stepped out of the smoke with a smirk, "Wow, you're really fast you know that?" She stopped and grinned, "But I guess you'll probably need that."

Ed stared at her for a moment before grinning and standing straight, "You think so, huh?" He took off his robe and took his stance, "Guess you're really not just some office worker, are you?"

"I'll be taking that as a complement" She smiled before clapping her hands together again, "Edward Elric."

**Yo! Arra, her full name is Arra Knight, don't ask why I gave her that name... It is personal... Moving along!**

**So, just a fair warning before you get your hopes up or anything about the fight, just to put it simple, I am not very good in battle scenes... I think I pretty much stink at it, it's usually too short, or doesn't make sense, or maybe not exciting, or it'll be hard to picture it... I'm so sorry if the next chapter disappoints you all! Please forgive me!  
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**Please Review!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hello! Ehmm...Well, I had a pretty nice holiday and I managed to update before my deadline passes, that's a win-win, right? Oh, yeah! Just a brief information, but my deadline is every Sunday after two weeks... If I update sooner then that also counts!**

**I'm going back to school next week so I'm not sure how often I'll be updating, that's the bad news right now. Good news is, I've been getting really excited in writing some of my stories because, for whatever reason I can never figure out, during my holiday I managed to get a lot of thinking time! I got so much ideas I decided to make a story on Fictionpress as well...heheh...**

**Okay, enough with the talking, Please enjoy this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood!  
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**Chapter 6**

"Ummm, Seth?" Seth turned his head and saw Al looking back towards him.

"Yeah?"

"It's…about your sister's alchemy…" Seth smirked on the inside but kept the same smile on his face. Al continued, "I've never seen those types of circle on her gloves before."

Seth shrugged before looking back towards the fight, "Guess you can say my sister is _very_ creative in alchemy."

_SNAP!_

Ed jumped back and avoided the blast of fire from Alice. He landed on both feet before clapping his hands and slamming them to the ground, a wall formed between the two fighters. He narrowed his eyes, _'Something is _very _weird about her alchemy…'_

Ed widened his eyes when the wall was frozen into solid ice before breaking and falling to the ground. On the other side, Alice smirked, "You're going to have to be more observant, Edward."

"Don't I know it" he said before jumping forward with his blade in front of him.

Alice narrowed her eyes before jumping back though Ed managed to get a pretty good cut at her gloves and an extra gash on her arm. She stopped and skidded slightly before gazing down towards her bleeding hand, _'So he's already trying to break my circle? Well, he is as good as the rumors say.'_

Alice looked back up and saw Ed jumped forward again, cutting a rather deep gash into Alice's abdomen. She gritted her teeth and narrowed her eyes before jumping to the side and snapping her fingers, _SNAP!_

Ed glanced back and saw the fire heading towards the pile of ice, melting them in an instant before a large wave washed over the training grounds.

Ed spitted out some of the water before shaking his head, "What did you do that for?"

Alice clapped her hands together before placing them on the water's surface, turning it into ice. The ice was heading towards Ed, since he was also drenched in the water, "Shit!" He jumped up and watched the ice stopped at the spot he stood previously before forming a block of ice.

"Hey, mind telling me how you can use fire and ice alchemy with the same gloves?" Ed asked while avoiding the shots of ice.

Alice hummed, "Actually, yes I would mind. I'll tell you when this fight is over."

Ed landed on top of the ice and glared towards her. He clapped his hands and cracked the ice until the explosion reached Alice. He jumped down and landed on the ground that wasn't wet.

Alice coughed slightly before stepping out of the cloud of smoke, her clothes were covered in dirt and her hand was covered in cuts caused by the bits of ice. She glared daggers towards Ed, "That wasn't very nice…"

"Look who's talking," Ed replied plainly.

The two stared at each other for a bit with narrowed eyes, as if daring one another to move first. Ed moved his foot but didn't break his gaze from the girl. He took a glance towards the girl's glove, one was already dangling off her hand and the other one had a slight cut on it. He smirked, _'One cut for each glove is all I need.'_

Alice narrowed her eyes before glancing slightly towards her gloves, _'Damn it! These gloves just can't survive any type of cuts, can they? Why did I even make them so delicate when I know I'll be using them for fights? Ugh, I'm such an idiot!'_

Ed jumped forward and aimed his blade towards her hands. Alice narrowed her eyes before jumping to the side, though her left glove was cut right off before falling to the wet ground.

'_Damn, that guy has a great aim!'_ She widened her eyes when her vision suddenly turned blurry; she gritted her teeth before forming her footing. He made a quick duck to avoid Ed's blade. _'Not now!'_ She quickly jumped back when Ed brought his blade down.

'_Great, now I'm just playing in the defensive while he struck me down!'_ Alice landed on two feet but ended up falling to one knee before bringing her hand up to her head, _'Of all times… Why now?'_

She shook her head and glanced forward. She sighed, "I knew those gloves wouldn't last." Both her gloves were cut clear off her hands during Ed's rapid attack.

Ed sighed, "Guess I win."

Alice furrowed her eyebrows before glancing to the side, only to widen her eyes a second later. She could see her eye patch halfway across the field, _'When did-?'_ She narrowed her eyes when she recalled the moment she duck and Ed must've accidently cut her eye patch off, lucky for her, some of her bangs were covering her left eye.

She thought for a moment before smirking, _'Sorry, Edward, but this isn't over'_ She looked at him and smirked, "Actually, this fight is far from over."

Ed raised his eyebrows slightly, "What are you saying?"

"Some blonde headed shrimp just accidently helped me in this fight," she said mockingly. She couldn't help but smirked when Ed began muttering curses loudly, "I never said it was you, did I?" Ed growled slightly, causing her smirk to widen.

She narrowed her eyes before glancing back towards Seth. Seth sighed before looking back at her. He shrugged lightly, _'But don't you dare go overboard, Alice…'_

Al looked at Seth questioningly before glancing back towards his brother and Alice. He thought for a moment, _'Why does he seem so worried all of the sudden?'_

The Fuhrer merely smiled warmly, _'Well now, I always knew that eye patch wasn't just some random accessory, seems I was right.'_

…

Alice blocked the boy's feet with one hand before punching him in the stomach, causing him to skid back a couple of feet. She stood straight and held her knuckles, they were actually bleeding after that one punch, "Ouch, your body is as hard as steel!"

Ed gritted his teeth before spitting some of the dirt that found its way into his mouth. He narrowed his eyes. _'Something feels…different'_ he thought before jumping forward and making a quick cut on her left feet.

Alice clapped her hands together, causing Ed to widen his eyes when she slammed them to the ground and created a sword of her own. She smirked, "What? You think you're the only one who can transmute without a circle?" She brought up the sword and narrowed her eyes before her smirk disappeared, "You better not have any hesitation this time."

Ed raised his eyebrows slightly when he noticed the sudden change of personality, _'She's certainly full of surprises, isn't she?'_ He narrowed his eyes before taking his stance again, "As if I was."

Alice narrowed her eyes before jumping forward in great speed. Ed widened his eyes before ducking his head; the sword went right above his head while cutting a couple strand of his hair. He jumped back before a large gash was placed on his left arm. He gritted his teeth before throwing himself forward; barely cutting Alice by the chest instead he cut her right shoulder.

Al and Roy both stared at the scene with wide eyes and their jaws dropped. Al shuddered slightly, "She's…fast…"

Roy nodded, "..._Very_ fast."

Seth stared at the scene with a bored look, _'What is it about that boy that makes her not want to lose so badly?'_

Ed brought down his blade against Alice's sword and his grip was so hard that it felt like his hands were going to bleed. He narrowed his eyes before separating them and using his left feet to stand his ground before throwing himself forward. Alice widened her eyes before only one thing came to her mind; she clapped her hands together before placing them to the ground.

'_I hope he won't mind if I messed with his head a bit,'_ Alice thought.

Ed widened his eyes before his foot was caught and he fall face first against the ground. He looked up and glanced back to see his foot was caught in what seemed to be coves, "When did-?"

"Edward"

He looked back straight ahead and quickly stood up to avoid Alice's blade. He clapped his hands together before breaking the coves and jumping back. He looked up, "You don't expect to stop me just like that, do you?"

Alice clapped her hands and slammed them to the ground, and much to Ed's surprise the ground under her didn't transmute instead, the one beneath his feet began morphing. He jumped back and saw the ground turned into a mountain of spikes. He landed on one foot before using his other one to push himself to the side, clashing blades with Alice.

"Will you stay still?" she yelled before jumping forward in high speed.

The two clashed blades over and over again, exchanging blows and each receiving equal amount of damage. The two crossed swords and pushed with same amount of strength, neither of them having any ideas on backing down.

"You're not going to let me win, are you?" Ed said under his breath while continuing to push the girl back.

She narrowed her eyes, "Tch, of course I won't! Besides…" she smirked, "It'd be interesting if a state managed to get beaten by an office worker, wouldn't it?"

Ed growled slightly, "You really think you'll be able to pull that off?"

She shrugged, "Who knows? If I can't beat you, then I'll have to give up my most prized research…" she narrowed her eyes, "You should know pretty well that there's no way I'll do that to some guy I just met."

"We'll see about that!"

The two separated and jumped back, they skidded slightly before coming to a halt. The two jumped forward and clashed blades, crimson liquid dripping down their clothes.

Alice grunted, _'This is getting nowhere!'_ She looked down and saw the ground beneath her feet was already destroyed, revealing the pipes under it. She smiled, _'This could work!'_ She clapped her hands and placed them to the pipes, smiling when she saw the wave of electricity dispersed into the metal.

She looked up and widened her eyes before quickly standing up and blocking Ed's blade, a moment late and she ended up with a cut near her cheek. Ed narrowed his eyes before clapping his hands and placing them on her blade, destroying it in an instant. She jumped up and landed a couple of feet away from the boy.

"You're pretty good yourself you know that?" She glanced back and saw Ed walking up towards her. He narrowed his eyes, "You're still going through with this?"

She smirked, "You shouldn't underestimate me, Edward. Because if you do…" she clapped her hands and grinned, "…you won't be paying attention to your surroundings!" She slammed her hands to the ground and watch as the pipes underneath transmuted.

Seth widened his eyes before taking a step forward. He stuck his head out of the tower's edge and he nearly fell down, "Wow!"

"Seth!" Al panicked slightly before leaning forward and holding on to his arms, securing him in place. "A-Are you crazy? You can fall off the edge!"

"I know that but…" he furrowed his eyebrows as he gazed down at the scene.

The entire training ground was exploded from beneath since the pipes Alice destroyed ran through the entire thing. A thick smoke screen was covering the ground below and the two fighters were nowhere in sight. Sounds of whispers could be heard from the row of soldiers below and some of the office workers were now gazing out their window.

Seth narrowed his eyes as he search for any sign of his sister and Edward. He raised his eyebrows slightly before his face turned slightly pale. "Alphonse…" he said solemnly.

"Eh?" Al responded a bit surprised that the boy used his full given name instead of his usual.

Seth stood back on both his feet and continued to gaze down, "Alice…she…" He turned back and looked at Al with an empty look before he pulled out a small smile, "You might want to call an ambulance…and a plumber."

**I always have issues with plumbers... Why? I have no idea, but I am a weirdo so it's only natural for me to have my own weirdness. Now then, as I've said before, I stink in battle scenes, I hope you don't mind... Please forgive me!**

**Ehmm... Just a quick reminder for all of you, this story follows the original story line of Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood, but if I were to make a sequel, maybe I'll make my own story line... But that's only if I'm making a sequel... I'm not very good in making stories-_-**

**As always, Please Review!:)**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hello, sorry, I couldn't help but update now! The feeling is eating me alive! I'll go nuts if I don't update this. Usually, when I finished writing a chapter, I can't really help but update it, especially if I don't have any ideas on changing it or anything like that.**

**Okay! Enough of that, that is unimportant at the moment! So, this chapter is just something that came in my mind during my not-so-normal-as-usual-holiday, though I can't say it was a pleasant thing that gave me the idea for this chapter and the one after this. Oh, no, it was sad... As always, Please enjoy this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood!  
><strong>

**Chapter 7**

"Brother! Brother!" Ed snapped his eyes wide open and jumped up into a sitting position. He blinked a couple of times to settle his vision. "Brother!" Ed turned his head and saw Al looking at him from the edge of the bed, "Are you alright?"

Ed furrowed his eyebrows before looking around the room seems he was in a hospital room. He looked back towards Al, "Al? When did I-"

"We brought you here after you lost the fight." Ed turned and saw Roy standing in front of the door; he had his arms crossed as he leaned against the door frame comfortably. He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, "You do remember your fight with Alice, right?"

"Fight? Alice?" He processed the words in his brain for a moment before widening his eyes, "The fight! Did I lose?"

"Yup," Roy placed simply before setting foot in the room. He stopped once he was in front of Ed's bed, "We didn't see how Alice beat you, when the smoke screen cleared up yesterday you were completely beat up. She blew up the pipes under the training grounds so now the HQ is filled with workers trying to fix them up, might take a while though."

Ed furrowed his eyebrows as he searched back in his memory, "…Can't really remember much of the fight."

Roy nodded, "You were standing on top of one of the pipes so you were exposed to the explosion more than she did, and maybe you hit your head or something."

"…"

_The smoke cleared up and Seth smiled slightly at the sight before him. Ed was on the ground and seemed to be unconscious, Alice was on the other side of the training grounds, she seemed to be struggling to sit back up but she was in no better condition than Ed._

_"Brother! Brother!" Al screamed in slight panic as he shook his unconscious brother._

_Alice sighed, "If you keep shaking him like that he'll die of blood lost," she said lightly as she held her own weight while leaning against a nearby pole, not forcing her body to get back up. Her words were enough to make Al stopped and more than enough to make Roy sprinted towards the nearest phone and call for an ambulance._

_She rubbed the back of her neck before looking around, "Where is that thing?"_

_"Here you go." She looked back and saw Seth smiling towards her. He brought up Alice's eye patch, "Get the rope fixed, alright?"_

_Alice narrowed her eyes and looked at Seth carefully, "…Sure."_

_Seth nodded before glancing towards Al, "Hey, Al!" The suit of armor turned and looked at Seth, who in return grinned, "Better get that brother of yours to a hospital soon!" He glanced back towards Alice and narrowed his eyes, "And _you_, young lady, will be having a long talk with me after this, is that understood?"_

_She pouted before looking away, "I hate it when you act like an adult..."_

_"What is _that_ supposed to mean? I am to an adult!"  
><em>

Ed's eye twitched slightly as he paled, "…I lost?"

"Yup," the others answered with no trace of sadness in their tone, causing the blonde haired boy to grunt slightly.

He sighed before crossing his arms over his chest, "The bet was if I won she'll tell me about the Philosopher Stone, but if I lost…"

"You'll be her slave for the next two months!" The three turned towards the open window and widened their eyes when the sight of a dark haired boy jumping into the room, without regards that they were in a private hospital room. Seth grinned as he looked up towards Ed, "You must've hit your head real hard if you nearly forgot your own wager."

"What the hell are you doing just jumping into people's rooms like that? There's a door right over there!" Ed yelled towards the boy while pointing towards the door behind Roy.

He shrugged, "It was more fun, plus I could use the exercise."

Roy shook his head lightly before sitting down on the chair next to Al. He glanced up towards Seth, "What are you doing here? Half an hour ago you won't even blink without knowing that someone was keeping an eye on Alice… And by 'someone' you'd mean yourself."

He chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck, "Yeah, well, Arra came by and she said she'll wait until she wakes up, the girl's Alice's friend so she's trustworthy."

"Wait a minute…" The three glanced towards Ed, who in return gave them all questioning looks, "Alice is in the hospital as well?"

"Of course she is!" Seth proclaimed before sitting down at the edge of Ed's bed, his back facing the other three. He narrowed his eyes and glared at the innocent wall, "Well, she may have won your fight but she didn't exactly step out without a scar, she was just as injured as you were. The only difference is when she blew up that pipe; you picked up more damage than she did."

"Tch," Ed crossed his arms behind his head before leaning back against his bed, "great, now I'm stuck being a slave for some weird girl that can't even be called a girl, the girl's got no- GAK!"

Everyone's attention was diverted when a flying plate hit Ed straight in the face, causing him to fall down to the floor. "Watch your mouth you stupid shrimpy dwarf!" the people in the room look back towards the now open door of Ed's room, a very pissed off Alice was standing there, her hand clenched by her sides and her eyes narrowed dangerously. She was wearing the hospital's clothes, plain white top and pants. She was still wearing an eye patch, though it's not her usual one, the hospital must've given her a temporary one to use.

Ed got back to his feet and glared at the girl, "What the hell was that fo-"

"Shut up!" she yelled cutting in on the boy as she threw an empty cup towards him, bull's eye! It hit him straight in the face, harder than before.

Al gasped before running to the other side of the bed, "Brother, are you alright?"

Ed grunted before sitting up and rubbing his now bleeding forehead, "Yeah, I've had worse…" He stood up and glared at the girl, "What are you doing just barging into my room and start clobbering me like that?"

Alice scoffed before crossing her arms over her chest, "I wouldn't have if you weren't such a jerk! Seriously, I wouldn't really mind if you make fun of me in front of my face, but don't do it behind my back!" She looked away and pouted, "It seems more like you don't trust me or something…"

Ed raised an eyebrow, "What?"

"Nah, nothing…" she said before walking into the room.

Seth sighed and shook his head, "Alice, the doctor said you shouldn't be walking around yet, your foot was really messed up because of that explosion, remember?" he glanced up and furrowed his eyebrows, "And I don't think it's wise for you to start beating up Ed again."

"Yeah, but…" she sit on the edge of Ed's bed before looking away, "Well, I just didn't like sitting all the time in that room, plus Arra keeps bothering me that I can't sleep… So I decided to go here instead! And, just in case you forgot what today is…"

"Oh?" Seth asked back with a smirk on his face, clearly knowing his sister's true reason for coming there.

Alice glared at her brother, silently telling him to stay quiet. Ed and Al looked at the two with questioning looks, while Roy merely observed them in amusement. Alice looked away, "Anyway, Seth, we need to go soon," she said glancing towards her brother, who nodded, before looking back at Ed, "And, Edward…"

Ed narrowed his eyes, preparing for anything else she might throw at him at the moment, "What?"

She stood from Ed's bed and walked towards the window, taking hold of the frame, "I'm sorry."

"Eh?"

"See you guys later!" she said before jumping out the window, sounds of leafs and branches snapping could be heard afterwards, thank goodness there weren't any sound of the girl's screaming.

Seth chuckled before standing up and shoving his hands in his pockets and walking towards the door. He stopped once he took of the door's frame when Roy grabbed his shoulder, causing the man to glance back towards him, "What?"

He narrowed his eyes, "Where are you and Alice going? Isn't she supposed to stay in the hospital for a couple of days by the least?"

He smirked, "True, but you heard her, didn't you? Besides, if she had enough strength to annoy Fullmetal in her condition, she's fine."

Roy narrowed his eyes before sighing and letting the man go. Seth smiled, "Thanks, Roy," he said before turning around and opening the door, "see you guys later!" He slammed the door shut behind him before turning left and walking down the hall, his back slouched and his hands in his pockets.

"Colonel," Roy turned and saw Al looking at him along with his brother; "is something the matter?"

He shook his head before sitting down on the chair next to Ed's bed. He sighed, "That girl is unbelievable… She's already pushing herself."

The two brothers turned quiet as the room was filled with an incredibly uncomfortable silence. Roy narrowed his eyes and was soon lost in his own thoughts, not noticing the look he was receiving from the two brothers.

"Hey, colonel," Roy looked up and saw Ed sit back on the bed before looking at him, "mind if I ask something about Alice and Seth?"

"Depends on the question," he said before sitting up straight.

He nodded, "Exactly, what happened to them...when they were younger?"

"…Why do you want to know?"

Ed narrowed his eyes and matched his glare with Roy's, it was a matter of time as to who would back down from the staring contest, or maybe glaring contest was a better name for the situation.

Roy sighed in defeat, "Fine, but I can only tell you little about those two, they're not exactly very open up towards others." Ed nodded, exactly what Roy was afraid of.

He rubbed the back of his neck before speaking, "Their father was also a state alchemist and they used to live in a small village in the West. They told me that their mother died a long time ago, so they lived with their father. Even after he quit the military he still continued his research of the Philosopher Stone," he paused and took a deep breath. "When Alice and Seth were still young, their father performed a human transmutation; one that was unfamiliar to military's intelligence. Unfortunately, we couldn't do anything because when we found out about it…" Roy swallowed the lump formed in his throat, "Their father was already dead, and I found the two were already staying in a hospital near their house. We tried investigating their home but, the transmutation circle was covered in dirt and blood that the pictures and writing became hard to examine..."

"Then, what was used in the transmutation?" Al spoke up.

Roy narrowed his eyes, "We suspected that their father must've given up his soul, and since we couldn't find anything in the house that could be the result of the transmutation, it was concluded that it might've been Alice."

Al staggered slightly, "Alice?"

"Yeah, I know it sounds crazy but, it makes sense," Roy said. He pulled out his wallet before taking out a small photo and showing it to the two. The picture was of a small dark haired boy with forest green eyes and a girl with the same characteristics standing in front of a large house. Roy furrowed his eyebrows as he gazed down at the picture, "this is Seth and Alice when they were younger…" he pointed towards Alice, "See? The transmutation changed her appearance completely."

Ed narrowed his eyes,_ 'She seemed…happy.'_

Roy flipped the picture and handed it to Ed, "Well, that's pretty much all that I know about them, and I'm the closest one to them in the military."

Ed scoffed, "That's not much."

Al hummed slightly, "Is there something special happening today that she's pushing herself to get out of the hospital?"

Roy raised his eyebrows slightly before crossing his arms over his chest and furrowing his eyebrows in concentration, "Actually, I'm not so sure, those two always run off somewhere without telling anyone, it's something pretty normal. The next thing you know they'll probably be here and act as if they never left…"

Ed narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest, catching the other two's attention. "Is something the matter, Brother?"

He glanced at the two of them, "Alice, when she was younger..." he glanced down at the picture and examined the long dark haired girl before speaking again, "She actually looked like a _girl_."

Al twitched slightly, "...Please don't say unimportant things in this kind of situation!"

**Jiii... School is starting soon... I won't be able to update that often anymore... Oh, cruel fate, why must fate be either weird, doesn't make sense or cruel?**

**And now, Please Review!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Hello, everyone! Now then...**

**GO AHEAD! KILL ME NOW, I TOTALLY DESERVE IT! I LEFT YOU GUYS AND DIDN'T UPDATED FOR LIKE FIVE DAYS... HUUAAAAHH! I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS, I BETRAYED MY OWN PROMISE TO UPDATE BEFORE MY DEADLINE...TT_TT**

**Purin: *bows* "I hope everyone can forgive my stupidity and lack of ability to control my own schedule. But, if you all would be so kind as to stay with my story... It's way too nice for words!" *cough* "And if so, I will now introduce you all to someone very important to the creation of 'Eye of Heaven'! She's my best friend and probably the weirdest, nicest and most creative lunatic I'll ever meet! But sadly, I have no plan on telling her real name so her nickname is...PumpkinBirdie!"**

**Pumpbie: *raises hand in greeting* "Yo!"**

**Purin: "Alright! Now then, is there anything you'd like to add before we start the story?"**

**Pumpbie: "Actually, yes. For everyone reading Purin's creation, I'd like to apologize for her stupidity, weirdness, and forgetfulness that caused this whole mess."**

**Purin: "Hey! I did not forget to update! I just didn't have time to send the story and all that stuff..."**

**Pumpbie: *rolls eyes* "Sure, you didn't."**

**Purin: *growled* "Well, anyways... Please enjoy this chapter!"**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood!**

**Chapter 8**

Alice and Seth stared at the scene with an amused smile, actually they were just plainly holding in the laughter. Alice was doing pretty well in hiding her giggles but Seth, his face was turning _red_ just by holding it all in.

Alice coughed slightly, "So, Edward… Mind letting us in on what happened?" her usually clear voice was now shaky and for Ed's point of view, apparently insulting.

He grunted and if he could, he would've probably crossed his arms over his chest, "If you stop staring at us like that then I might tell you but…" He narrowed his eyes, "You're going to laugh now, aren't you?"

Al shifted uncomfortably behind him, "Brother…"

"No, no, of course not…" she muttered softly, she could barely form the words. Her smile widened and her cheeks turned pink before she finally snapped, "Okay! Okay! I will laugh!" She doubled over and fell to her knees, holding her stomach and practically laughing her lungs out, if that was possible.

"Oh, god! This is hilarious!" Seth fell to his back on the floor and laughed as equally hard as Alice, maybe a bit louder. He banged his hand on the floor, hit any harder and the surface will crack. He looked away from the two and held out a hand, as if trying to keep his distance, "Oh, man, even when I don't see you two personally it's still funny!"

Alice finally fell completely and curled up into a ball, "I-I… I will never…" She glanced up slightly, "I'll never be able to look at you the same way again, Edward!"

She fell back and rolled to her brother's side, the two acting like little children on a hot summer day that would try and cool themselves down by rolling on the floor. The two continued to laugh despite the death glare sent to them by the blonde haired alchemist.

Roy blinked before glancing towards Ed, he's been standing in the background from the beginning, "Well, guess they just find your suffering amusing, Fullmetal."

"Yes, yes we most certainly do!" the two answered simultaneously before they continue to roll on the floor, nearly knocking down one of the stack of perfectly organized paperwork.

Ed grunted as a vein appeared on his forehead, and…he snapped, "WILL YOU TWO SHUT UP? I KNOW I DON'T HAVE AN ARM ANYMORE SO JUST DEAL WITH IT!"

_After a lot of arguments, laughter, jokes and insults later (mostly insults and laughter)…_

Alice sits on her couch with crossed arms and closed eyes, looking serious for the first time in that day. She hummed slightly and nodded, "I see…" She opened her eyes and looked back into Ed's, "So, you're going to your old hometown, Rasembool, to get your automail fixed so you can fix Al's armor, am I right so far?"

Ed nodded, "More or less."

"Right," she nodded again. "But exactly why are you even telling me?"

He shrugged, "Maybe because I'm your personal slave at the moment."

"Oh, right," she mumbled softly. She furrowed her eyebrows and looked down to her lap, she looked up slightly and met Ed's expectant gaze. She sighed, "Fine, you can do whatever you want. But that's only because you are completely and utterly useless without your other arm."

"What?"

**The Next Day**

Ed gulped and shifted uncomfortably before leaning closer towards Al, who was placed in a wooden box and treated much like a luggage and to an even weirder rate he somehow takes as fun and amusing, "Al, listen."

"Mm?" he replied.

"I can tolerate Mayor Armstrong being here to protect us and all that crap but…" he glanced back and narrowed his eyes. He jerked his head back towards his brother, a scowl and a very annoyed look on his face, "Remind me again why Alice and Seth are both here."

After their little incident with Scar, Mayor Armstrong was told to accompany them back to Rasembool for he was able to at least stay alive against the state alchemist's murderer. That much was tolerable for the brothers. But apparently, there was two extra that had to come along, Alice and Seth. Why?

_Alice smiled and leaned forward, "You heard me, Edward." She brought up a finger and narrowed her eyes, the smile on her face turning dark and maniacal, "Of all the state alchemists, you are the youngest in history and you can perform alchemy without a circle, you could say that you've taken up my curiosity to their edge…"_

_"So that's why I'm going to come along and see the place where you spent your childhood and began your study of alchemy!"_

"Oh, yeah, that… Stupid research crazy girl." He sighed and glanced to the side, catching the scene to be quite something to watch. "And… Why is Seth here as well?"

Al sighed, "He said he wouldn't trust his little sister with two boys alone on the country side and said that if Alice went with us, he had to come along as well, no exception whatsoever."

Ed growled under his breath and paled, "What did he expect us to do anyway?"

Alex and Seth were having a fight, seems it was one of the man's ways of teaching_ 'manliness'_ to him, and Alice was trying to take her brother out of the fight before he ends up like sliced cheese.

Ed raised his eyebrows slightly and hummed, _'Alice really does hate wearing skirts, doesn't she?'_ The girl still refused on wearing a skirt, so she was wearing rather boyish clothing, and Ed wouldn't be surprised if they were Seth's old clothing. She was wearing a black slightly form fitting top (but there's really not much to see) and leather pants; she was also wearing a long white jacket, something about Seth worrying that she might catch a cold.

Seth on the other hand was wearing a plain white top with the exact same leather pants as Alice's, but obviously bigger. He was wearing a brown jacket and carrying a small bag with him, which he claimed to be Alice's and not his... It has certain similarities to a purse.

"GAK!" the boy was pinned to the floor by the large man. He glanced up and growled, "Damn it!" He grabbed the man's shoulders, earning a surprise look from him when he threw the man over his head and slammed him on the ground, unfortunately with a lot less force than what Alex gave to is previous attack.

"Hohoh…" He stepped out unharmed, in fact, he looked quite satisfied. "Excellent, if you wish to protect those you care for, you must become stronger!"

Seth gulped and paled, "I-Is that so?"

"Now then, allow me to show you, my full strength!"

Ed sighed and shook his head before looking back straight ahead with a scowl, "When is that train coming? Feels like hours we've been waiting here."

"Actually, we've been waiting for only like fifteen minutes now," he glanced to the side and saw Alice sits down next to him. She looked at him from the corner of her eyes, "Just be a little more patient, alright?"

He scoffed and looked away, "Yeah, sure. You're not going to save your brother?"

She shook her head lightly, "No, actually it's kind of amusing to see him like this." She glanced back and smiled, "At least he seems happy, you know, not depressed or worrying about me that much."

Ed thought about the fact for a moment before nodding, "So, I guess you don't like it if he keeps worrying about you, is that it?"

"Well, not completely..." She looked down to her lap and furrowed her eyebrows, "I don't want him to stress himself out just for my wellbeing, he always does that ever since our mother died. But, I'm scared at the thought of him stop thinking about me..."

Ed raised his eyebrows slightly, 'Why is she...acting so different all of the sudden?'

Alice sighed before looking away; there was no point in looking at him if he wasn't even going to take her seriously, the subject was futile to continue, she knew that much. Ed stared at her for a moment, she always seemed odd, and not in a bad or good way...in the middle. She'd act so rough around others but, she can act so soft like that out of nowhere. How is that even possible? He shook his head and looked back towards the rail tracks, hoping the train would just arrive.

Alice glanced at him slightly, she didn't know why but, there was something different about him, something that made her constantly interested in him. Basically, that was one of her reasons for accepting his challenge in the first place. She smiled slightly before looking back straight ahead, _'That was stupid of me...'_ She furrowed her eyebrows and looked back towards Ed's hollow sleeve.

"What are you looking at?"

She jerked up and widened her eyes slightly when Ed turned towards her. She panicked slightly before looking away, "It's nothing."

Al looked at the two from the side, somehow the scene seemed amusing to him. _'Seems like Alice and brother are getting along better now, I'm glad so.'_

**Later When the Train Arrived**

Alice's eye twitched slightly, "Seth, you do realize that _you_ were the one that insisted on coming along, right?"

He gulped, "Y-Yeah, I know that but…" He gripped the pole tightly as if his life depended on it, "You'll never get me on that _metal beast_!"

Alice grunted and continued to pull on the boy's jacket, "Don't be stupid! It's just a _train_ damn it!"

"NO!" Seth yelled equally hard, his grip on the pole never loosened and if he even tries to add anymore pressure to the innocent pole, it'll surely snap in half. He gritted his teeth and dug his footing to the ground, "Damn it, Alice! You know how I don't get along with transportations!"

Alice sweat dropped and narrowed her eyes, "Exactly why I didn't want you to come in the first place."

Al and Ed both stared at the scene with confusion, turning towards the mayor for some answers. Alex nodded before glancing back towards the two siblings, "Yes, well, I suppose Seth never considered that single fact before deciding on coming along with us."

"What fact?" Al asked, a bit surprised at the sudden outburst and childish reaction of the usually calmer and at least a bit mature man, at least he's seem so much more mature than he is now.

He coughed, "Well, to put it simply, he has _motion sickness_."

"Argh! That is it!" She snapped. She grabbed the small bag Seth was carrying, turns out it is hers, and pulled out what appeared to be a shot gun. She narrowed her eyes and aimed at the boy's head, "You asked for it!"

_BANG!_

…

Ed stared at Alice with wide eyes, "So, that gun wasn't a normal one?"

"Of course it wasn't!" She opened her eyes and glared daggers at the blonde haired boy, "You didn't think I was going to kill my own brother, did you? I altered that gun myself, it uses a different type of bullet that has a special chemical in them, it doesn't kill people but it knocks them out. So, technically it's not something soldiers would bring."

Alex nodded, "Yes, I remembered when Seth asked you to make that gun; it was when one of those rumors of bandits running around the East. You were doing some research there, weren't you?"

Alice sighed and looked down to her brother; he was sleeping soundlessly on her lap. She furrowed her eyebrows and pouted, "Yeah, he was way too persistent so, I just did what he asked, though it was completely unnecessary." She crossed her arms over her chest and looked away from the two men's gazes, "Guess those stupid bandits just didn't find me good enough to kidnap."

Ed raised an eyebrow, the edge of his mouth turning upwards and forming a smirk, "Why is that? Was it because they didn't even know you were a _girl_?"

Alice widened her eyes before looking back towards Ed, fury in her eyes, "S-Shut up!"

_PLAK!_

**With Al**

Al stared straight towards the door towards the other train parts. He couldn't see much of anything but earlier Ed told him that they were going to be sitting near where he was, so it was obvious that he could hear every word of their little conversation.

He sighed in relief, "Thank goodness, I was afraid Alice could've killed Seth. But then again, I don't think she'd ever do anything to hurt him…"

_'They both tend to fight a lot but, I doubt either one of them would be able to bear the idea of the other one getting hurt…'_ He hummed slightly, _'I wonder what really happened to them.'_

"S-Shut up!"

_PLAK!_

Al looked up when he hear the loud sound of a slap, right after Alice's now far too familiar voice. He sweat dropped at the sight of his brother being thrown and slammed to the door, his face flat against the glass's surface. "Well, guess Seth must've trained her to be strong under her own protection as well…"

**Pumpbie: "Hey, why did you write my nickname as _Pumpbie_? I thought we agreed that it was _PumpkinBirdie_."**

**Purin: "Yeah, but, it's too long for the short conversations dialog... I made it shorter, plus, it sounds adorable!"**

**Now, in case any of you are thinking that Al isn't getting any spotlight in the story, that will soon change because... Al has a rather more gentlemen side, something Ed lacks deeply, you'll know what I mean later on. I just want to make one thing clear, Alice is great with altering weapons and guns but I assure you, I am trying my best not to turn her into a Mary Sue! Please judge my work again if you wish...  
><strong>

**Please Review!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hello, everyone!**

**Purin: "Yes, I'm supposed to update this on Sunday but I think that I might be to busy that day with Monday and the fact that in two weeks I've got a big exam coming up in school and other places, plus all the stuff I need to take care of to fix my grades, and then the fact that I still need to remind my parents about my school payment, and then-"**

**Pumpbie: "I don't think we're here to discuss your personal stresses, are we? But if we are, maybe I can join in as well..."**

**Purin: *sweat dropped* "Nah, I think we need to move on from that annoying topic before it's too late. Well, anyways, now Pumpbie constantly reminds me to update before my deadline so, here I am! For all the fans that's happy about my updating faster, do thank Pumpbie!" *ecstatic***

**Pumpbie: *smirks* "Yes, well, it wasn't easy with you sometimes forgetting to update or didn't finish the story and with you also getting worked up with school and making designs and- Should I continue?"**

**Purin: "...Please enjoy this Chapter!"**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood!**

**Chapter 9**

Ed stared at the scene blankly before finally speaking up, "So, I'm guessing this is what you meant by his motion sickness has gotten less fatal?"

Alice sighed and brought a hand up to her face, she then cupped her cheek before glancing towards her brother, "Yup, this is already way better than when we were younger."

Seth was hanging by the window next to his sister, and he was throwing away all his breakfast and dinner out the window. Seth's usually not so pale face was now as pale as a ghost and his arms were limp on the other side of the mirror. He was sweating like there's no tomorrow and his hair was tangled all over. He even unbuttoned his clothes until half way down just to cool his stomach. All and all, he looked like a wreck.

Alice looked at her brother with a dumbfounded look, "I told you that you shouldn't have come along. But you just won't listen to me, will you?"

He grunted and glanced back towards her, slight anger and sickness mixed in his expression, "N-No way! I'm not going to let you go alone on one of your crazy researches again- Oh, god…" He turned and poked his head out of the window before barfing again.

Ed's twitched slightly, _'Is this guy out of his mind?'_ He shook his head lightly and glanced to his side, Alex was sleeping calmly like a baby… Okay, maybe that statement wasn't completely suitable. Though what frightened him was if the turbulence would cause the man to fall to him. Oh, the horror…

"Seth, maybe you need to go down at the next station and catch some fresh air for a moment," Alice advised her clearly sick brother, he looked as if he was ready to die.

He growled, "Damn it, I can't believe I still have this stupid motion sickness!"

"Don't worry about it." Alice smiled slightly and patted his shoulder to sooth him, which is proven to work when he began breathing normally again, "Besides, if you don't have that anymore, then I won't be able to take care of you anymore," she said, her voice growing softer by every word.

Seth glanced back and widened his eyes slightly at the sight of his sister smiling; she was smiling a genuine smile. The fact that it was genuine was surprised enough but just to make it worse, she was still holding on to him, to his arm, just like how she would when they were younger…

His gaze softened before he forced himself to smile as well, "Well, guess that's one goof out of it."

Alice paused for a moment before the scowl on her face returned to their former glory. She narrowed her eyes and grunted before looking away. She scoffed and crossed her arms over her chest, "You idiot."

He chuckled, "Heheh, well you certainly change back quickly."

Ed raised his eyebrows slightly, _'What… Just happened?'_ He was the only one there conscious to see that happen, probably a once in a lifetime opportunity.

**At the Next Train Station**

They finally decided to go down for a moment so Seth could get a quick whip of fresh air, and mostly so Alice can shoot him again.

Alice looked at her brother, "You okay now?"

"Yup"

"You don't have to go back to the bathroom for the twenty seventh time?"

"Nope"

"You had your breath?"

"Yup"

"You still need me to shoot you again?"

"Yup"

Alice nodded and kneeled down next to Seth, but instead of using her gun, she used the old fashion way. She raised her hand high above her head and slammed down to his.

_BRAK!_

The two brothers paled and sweat dropped, though Alex didn't seem to be bothered by this. Alice smirked and lifted her brother slightly, bringing him up towards the large man, "Mayor, would you mind carrying him, please?"

"Not at all, but, we're not leaving for a couple more hours, aren't we?" he said and in an instant the girl literally threw her brother up to the man's shoulder, how she has the energy to do so is beyond anyone there's imagination. He nodded with a smile, "Seems you've gotten stronger as well, Ms. Lockhart."

Alice looked at the man for a moment before blushing and rubbing the back of her neck, "Ummm, well, yeah, I guess you could say so… Seth's been really hard on my training these days."

Alex smiled; which is something that Alice seemed oblivious of and the two Elrics seemed to be curious of. The man nodded again before turning around and walking back towards the train, leaving the three alone, the train wasn't leaving for another hour or so.

"So, Alice," Al was the first to break the silence. Alice glanced at him, "Does Seth train you?"

"…Sometimes," she muttered, though she seemed a bit uncomfortable about answering it.

…

Alice smiled happily as she continued to listen to Al's stories, he was just telling her about his and his brother's couple of past missions, though mostly he was telling her of the times Ed would get insulted or would mess up and maybe admit to himself that he was indeed lacking in height.

Alice grinned slightly, "Well, Edward, you do understand that a lot of girls prefer taller boys, don't you?" she said teasingly.

Ed stiffened and looked away, "S-Shut up! Who the hell asked your opinion?"

She shrugged, "No one. But as a girl myself, I think I have the right to voice my opinion."

He scoffed and looked back at her with a smirk, "Heh, I wouldn't even bother to stop to think about a girl's opinion who's tinier than me and don't even got any-"

_Bull's Eye!_

Al sighed and shook his head, "You two just can't get along well for more than five minutes, can you?"

Ed and Alice were both tackling each other on the ground. Alice was biting the boy's blonde braids while he struggled to reach for her neck and strangle her with his own two hands. Maybe after ripping each other's hair off and strangling the life out of one another they'll be ready to settle down.

"Edward Elric…" But fate says otherwise. Ed widened his eyes when the back of his collar was grabbed before and he was soon lifted high above the ground, roughly, and meeting the gaze of Alex himself, "That is no way to treat a lady!"

"Alice…" Alice paled slightly before glancing back and meeting the deathly gaze of a pair of deep forest green orbs. Seth growled under his breath, "What do you think you are doing causing such a racket in a train station? I was knocked out for a couple of hours and you thought you can start causing trouble?"

"…Maybe-"

_PLAK!_

"Auch, auch, auch, auch!" she mumbled as she held her head with both hands.

Seth blew on his fist before crossing his arms over his chest, "Honestly, if you can't control your anger better, it's going to get you into trouble someday you know that?"

Ed paled at the Mayor's gaze, "Edward Elric, I am here to escort you and your brother safely to Rasembool and fix your automail. But," he took a step forward and proved his dominance by shadowing the boy, "I will not tolerate such behavior…" He gulped as the large man kneeled down, their eyes met and merely a couple of inches apart, "Do I make myself clear, Edward Elric?"

He staggered slightly before regaining some of his composure, "Y-Yes, sir!"

Al twitched slightly before bringing up both hands to his mouth and looking away from the group, 'We really are making a comedy act here, a really good one!'

Alice and Ed both glanced at each other before crossing gaze, refusing to look at each other if they're not allowed to throw any insults towards one another.

Seth sighed, "Well, me and Alex are going to go and buy some refreshments, you guys need anything?"

"Nope"

"Na-ah"

"…I can't have any refreshments even if I wanted some."

The other four sweat dropped when Al turned to the corner with a dark aura forming above him. Seth chuckled slightly, "T-That's alright, Al! We'll be back in a couple of minutes, okay? See you!" Seth dashed away.

Alex glanced back towards the three, "Alphonse, you will be guarding these two so that they will not try and kill each other while we are gone. And you two," he glanced towards the two.

They both paled, "Y-Yes?"

"Do not make his job any harder."

"Y-Yes, sir!"

…

Alice had her gaze locked to her notebook. Her eyes were distant and her eyebrows were narrowed, a pen was caught between her now frozen fingers. Her feet were crossed and her elbows resting by her thighs. Well, this was better than having her fight with Ed again.

Al stared at her, "Brother, what do you think she's thinking about?"

He scoffed, "Why the hell should I care?" he said before looking away.

"Brother," Al started, "it's kind of obvious that even you would be curious about her and Seth as well."

Ed narrowed his eyes before glancing back and seeing that Al hadn't even looked away from the girl herself when he said that. He furrowed his eyebrows, "Why are you so interested, Al?"

"…"

"Al?"

"O-Oh!" he staggered slightly. He chuckled, "W-Well, I'm just curious… That's all…"

Ed raised an eyebrow and stared at his brother before glancing at the girl himself. He narrowed his eyes, _'No matter how I look at her, she's just a girl…'_ he glanced towards his brother, _'What does Al sees in that girl that's so important?'_

Alice hummed slightly, _'That doesn't make sense at all…'_ she thought. There was a picture of a transmutation circle by the page she was on along with the picture of a man wearing religious clothing, _'If that man really possessed a fake Philosopher Stone, he could've tried and using it for more than just taking control of that small town. Even if it was fake, he could've still gain a lot more than just his previous goal, or… Did he get the stone from someone else?'_

She sighed and closed her book, _'No use, I can't think clearly right now.'_ She brought up a hand up to her head and winced slightly, _'Why do I keep getting these headaches? I thought it stopped after my fight with Edward.'_

She furrowed her eyebrows and glanced back slightly, seeing Ed and Al arguing with each other about something that she obviously didn't care about at the moment. She looked at Ed before her gaze fell towards Al, _'Alphonse? I couldn't have accidentally… Got it from him, could I?'_

…

Alex nodded with satisfaction. He knew they weren't going to be able to keep that peaceful situation up for much longer, it was only a matter of time before one of them snaps again, but at least they can get some peace at the moment. "Excellent, I knew we could leave you two and have you still in one piece when we get back."

"Or else," Seth muttered while glaring harshly at the two brothers.

Alice sighed and shook her head lightly,_ 'That guy is way too paranoid at times…'_

Alex nodded again before he glanced back and looked around the station, hoping to find an empty seat, only to stop his search and instead find a familiar face, "Dr. Marcoh?"

At the mention of the person's name, a man quite far from the group glanced back. He had dark hair and slightly pale skin, but he didn't really have any specific characteristics. Meeting their gaze and widening his eyes before turning around and quickly making his way through the crowd, leaving the station as fast as possible.

Seth raised his eyebrows slightly, "That was Tim Marcoh?"

"Yes," Alex replied. He paused, "What was he doing here?"

**Purin: *drowsy* "Hmmm... What's the difference when you eat rice with ketchup and when you eat it with chilly?"**

**Pumpbie: "Isn't that a bit more random than usual? Well, maybe not too weird on your standards but it is on other people's standards."**

**Purin: "Oh, yeah, it is... Well, anyways..."**

**Please Review!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Hello everyone!**

**Purin: "If any of you are wondering why I've updated this early, when my limit is still like three or two weeks from now, I have good news and bad news! I'm updating this week but next week I will try everything to avoid touching my computer! We've got...a big exam and my parents said my grade was a little lower than usual and stuff like that, you know what I mean, right?"**

**Pumpbie: "My parent's been pushing me with all the studying like my life depends on it."**

**Purin: *nod* "Yeah... Oh, by the way, it was Pumpbie's idea to update today! So...**

**Please enjoy this Chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood!  
><strong>

**Chapter 10**

"So, we're all cool and friends now, right? No more shooting and gun pointing necessary?" Al muttered in slight panic at the sight.

The former alchemist was on the ground, the gun that was previously held firmly in his shaken hands were on the other side of the room and on the ground. Straight across from the man was, wouldn't you know it, was Seth, and he was holding a gun to the man's forehead, plus that gun doesn't look like the one Alice used on him.

Seth rolled his eyes and sighed before pulling the gun back and shoving it in his robes. He crossed his arms over his chest, "Hey, he started it. I just did it out of reflex," he said calmly with a slight shrug.

Alice sweat dropped mentally, _'Out of reflex? He looked like he was ready to pull the trigger!'_

The man staggered slightly and looked down, the shadow covering his face, "How can the military find me here?"

"Oh no, you have it all wrong, Doctor," Alex said. "We were only passing by, our destination is still further up east," his words seem to calm the doctor slightly.

He furrowed his eyebrows and nodded, "I-I see…"

Ed yawned slightly; this wasn't exactly all that interesting to him. He glanced back and raised an eyebrow at Alice, she was… Hiding? She was scrunching herself behind her brother anyway; you can call that hiding, right?

Alice furrowed her eyebrows and gripped Seth's sleeves tightly, her knuckles turning slightly white. _'That's… Dr. Marcoh?'_ she thought to herself.

"Hey, Alice," she glanced back and saw Ed looking at her with slightly furrowed eyebrows. He moved closer before whispering, "You alright?"

She thought about his question for a moment before her grip loosened, Seth noticed this though Alice herself didn't seem like she realized her action. She looked up at him, keeping a firm gaze to his golden orbs. "Yeah, I'm fine," she muttered softly and looked away.

Ed narrowed his eyes, "Are you sure?" _'She looked like she just saw a ghost.'_

**Later, after all the confusions had passed and they were all calm.**

The six sit calmly and quietly in the room, though some might be calmer than others. The brothers finally finished their little story to Marcoh for their reason to search for the Philosopher Stone.

The man nodded and hummed, "I see… So, you managed to take back your brother's soul and placed it in this armor. And now you need to get his body back, am I right so far?"

Ed nodded, "Yeah, more or less."

"But you did know that Human Transmutation was a taboo in alchemy, didn't you?"

"Y-Yeah…"

Marcoh narrowed his eyes and gazed down to his lap, obviously thinking hard of what he should do. Alice was sitting across from the man, though she seems to be the only one in the room with the equal amount of fear as the former state alchemist. She narrowed her eyes and gripped her pants tightly, her knuckles turning pale white. She glanced up slightly, seeing the man's troubled look. Her gaze turned harder and she gritted her teeth, various emotions mixing inside of her and more than ready to burst out.

Seth glanced at his sister for a moment before his gaze turned harder, _'Alice… Will she really be alright?'_

"I'm sorry, but I can't tell you anything about that cursed stone."

"What? Why not?" _'This isn't the first time I've heard that line…' _Ed thought, his gaze falling at Alice for a moment before he returned to glaring at the man.

Marcoh grunted, "I can't because you might be able to create an actual stone!" He glanced up with narrowed eyes and a horrified look, "Listen to me boy, there's a lot about alchemy that aren't meant for the human mind and body, that's why they're called taboos. If you obtain the actual knowledge of how to create a Philosopher Stone, then you might-"

_BRAK!_

Everyone in the room jumped slightly before their gazes stopped at the only girl in the room. Alice was looking down to the floor with her bangs covering her eyes and both her hands slammed to the surface of the table.

Seth furrowed his eyebrows, _'Alice…'_

"I'm sorry, I…" she muttered, "I… I need to get some fresh air." She turned and made her way across the room, slamming the door shut on her way out. The rest of the people in the room gapped at the sight, well, other than one.

The four turned quiet before they looked back at Seth, who in return sighed. He stood and glanced towards Marcoh with an apologetic look, "I'm sorry, but please pardon my sister's behavior. She's a bit… Troubled, that's all."

"Seems it's something much more than that," he muttered lightly. The man furrowed his eyebrows, "What's your name? I don't recall you or your sister introducing yourselves earlier. And you seem awfully familiar somehow…"

"I'm sure you knew my father well, doctor." He smiled, "My name is Seth, Seth Lockhart."

**Later Outside the House**

Seth scratched the back of his neck and grunted, "Damn it, that girl's still good at hiding." He glanced around the small alley, he knew she was upset but she couldn't be as stupid as to run off alone in an unknown town, is she?

He sighed, "Well, no hurt in looking for her in town," he muttered before shoving his hands in his pockets and walking towards town, hoping he would get a trail of that girl in some sort.

Meanwhile, the girl herself sits on top of a large and bushy tree, it'd be nearly impossible to spot her from afar. She was leaning back against the tree trunk with her head thrown back so she'd be gazing up the tree. Her right arm was limp by her side while the other one was holding on to a small notebook.

She lifted the book up to her eye level, "The Philosopher Stone," she mumbled. "Seth's name is the Crimson Eyed Alchemist, isn't it?" she paused and furrowed her eyebrows, stinging pain surging through her, "When in reality, that name suits me way better."

Her gaze softened, "Dr. Marcoh… That man is going to get sucked up in a lot of trouble," she smirked and looked to the opposite direction, "as if he hasn't already."

_Alice blinked and stared at the small crimson stone, her large forest green eyes filled with curiosity. She glanced up when she heard slight chuckles, meeting the gaze of none other than Dr. Marcoh himself, "Well, aren't you the curious one?"_

_She grinned, "I'm daddy's daughter after all!"_

"_Oh, that's right," he kneeled down and patted the girl softly. His gaze softening, "Maybe you'll be able to beat your father someday, won't you?"_

"_Of course!" she said confidently. She glanced up with determination in her eyes, "I'll beat brother and then I'll beat daddy! I'll even beat you as well!"_

_The man stared at her with bewilderment for a moment before smiling again. He nodded, "Well, then I guess I don't need to look for a replacement for when I retire then, do I?"_

"_Alice," the two glanced back. Alice smiled brightly at the sight of her father walking into the room. He held out his hand, "Come on dear, we need to get back before dark, Seth is already waiting in the car."_

"_Okay," she looked back and gave the doctor one last smile. She turned and skipped towards her father, taking hold of his hand, "Let's go home!"_

"Let's go home…" she mumbled to herself. "…If only we could."

**Later in the Afternoon**

"I'm worried about Alice," Al mumbled softly towards his brother, though he sounded as if he was talking to himself.

"Don't worry about her too much, Al," Ed responded. He crossed his arms behind his back and closed his eyes, "She's probably just dealing with another one of her issues. She'll be fine."

"I don't know about that." Ed glanced towards his brother with raised eyebrows, he hadn't lifted his head; "Did you see how she was when she walked out? She looked like she was going to…" he paused, "…Cry."

…

'_Well, she's definitely not crying. Either that or she ran out of tears…'_ Ed thought as he glanced back towards the girl who was sitting next to him.

Alice was glaring straight ahead, she wasn't really glaring at anything or anyone, since the only person in front of him was Alex and he was vast asleep. After feeling the boy's gaze on her she moved her gaze towards the boy, she narrowed her eyes dangerously.

Ed gulped before finding his voice again, "A-Alice… Are you-?"

She didn't let him finish his sentence before looking away angrily. She had her feet crossed over one another and her arms over her chest.

Ed sweat dropped before looking away as well. He grunted, _'What the hell is wrong with her? What did I even do to make this mad at me?' _He glanced back at her and saw she was still refusing to look at him, causing him to sigh before gazing out the window.

The two were practically alone at that moment. Seth and Alex were both asleep, Al was at the back of the train like before and that entire part of the train was empty; seems that train was in its empty days.

It's nothing personal but, it doesn't really feel comfortable when you're alone in a place and the only other person with you is so angry at you that they don't even want to look at you, does it? And just to make it worse, you don't even know why they're angry.

Ed fidgeted uncomfortably and moved his eyes a bit so he could look at Alice's reflection from the window. He sighed before building up his courage, "Alice?" Not receiving any reply, he decided to fully turn and looked at the girl, "Alice, will you listen to me?"

She didn't move or voice anything as a reply. Ed narrowed his eyes, "Alice, you know I can't apologize unless I know exactly what made you angry with me in the first pla-"

"I'm not angry at you," she cut in.

Ed raised an eyebrow, "You're…not?"

"No, no I am not," she repeated. She glanced at him with an uninterested look, "I am angry, but I'm not angry at you, Edward. So there's nothing for you to worry about."

Ed stayed silent for a moment before nodding, though it was obvious that he wasn't satisfied by the reaction he received. Alice nodded before looking away again. _'Why does she keep looking away from me? Is it really that hard to look at me in the eyes?' _Ed thought.

Alice narrowed her eyes and gripped the fabric of her pants, _'…I know I'm angry… But not at him…'_.

**And there you have it! Oh, sorry, no time to chat right now, my mom and dad are right by my tails... I'll be updating in two weeks from now and it'll be either on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday. Wish me luck!  
><strong>

**Please Review!**

**Purin: "Hey, where's Pumpbie?"**

**R(1): "Oh, she said she needed to leave in a flash to study."**

**Purin: "What? Oh that cheater!" *runs out the studio***


	11. Chapter 11

**Hello, everyone! Purin is back!**

**Purin: "Well, after all my spare time taken and some stresses along the way... I finally finished all my exams! My scores weren't that high but my parents said that a little rise from my last flunky grades was already good enough. I am totally relieved!"**

**Pumpbie: "So, now it's story time again, right?"**

**Purin: "That's right! Because my parents didn't kill me or take away my right to play internet, I can continue on my stories!"**

**Pumpbie: "They'd do that?"**

**Purin: *shrug* "I don't know, maybe."**

**Please enjoy this chapter!  
><strong>

**Chapter 11**

Ed's eye twitched slightly, his expression hard and his breath held in his lungs. He glanced towards Winry and nodded, "I'm ready."

She nodded and glanced down, "One…"

"Two…" Pinako counted along.

"Three," the two said simultaneously.

Ed stiffened as the unbearable pain surge through for a moment before disappearing again. He sighed and leaned back, "I hate it when you connect the nerves…"

Winry shook her head lightly, "You should be able to handle something like that by now."

"Yeah, guess so…" he said with a nod. "But what I'm going to point out now is," he glanced back and narrowed his eyes; a vein appeared by his forehead, "what the hell are you doing here, Alice?"

The girl was sitting on a nearby chair, a camera in her hands. She smiled for a moment before smirking, "Oh, don't be like that, Edward. You know I mean well…" she looked away and grinned, "That and it's quite a rare opportunity to see something as amusing as you in pain like that."

Ed growled before glancing towards his childhood friend, "And exactly why did you let her in here?"

Winry giggled and waved her finger in a circle, "Well, she did tell me that she was here for research. Something like this is worth her writing, right? That and I am completely on her side in this case," she replied proudly with a slight smirk.

Ed sighed deeply, "Great, now I've got two pains to deal with." He glanced towards a smirking Alice before looking away, his face paler, "And one of them is free to follow me back to Central…"

_Ed glanced out the train window and saw Marcoh still talking with Alice. Seth was already inside, along with Alex, returned after his trip to place Al back in the train._

_Alice narrowed his eyes, "What do you want from me, doctor?"_

_Marcoh clenched his hands and gritted his teeth. "Don't pretend like you don't know anything, girl." He narrowed his eyes, "Where is it? Where did you hide your father's research files and his pocket watch?"_

_Alice scoffed and looked away, "In case you missed the news, my father is dead and left nothing behind to me or my brother." She glanced at him from the corner of her eyes, "He died, and we couldn't even burry him afterwards. His research is gone, along with him and his memories."_

_Marcoh was stunned by the girl's answer, "But that's not… How can you forget him so easily?"_

_The girl held back the pain growing in her chest as she forced her voice to speak the words, "Something happened. I don't even remember what my parents looks like anymore…" She glanced towards the man with the darkest look she could pull off, "In addition, his pocket watch was destroyed during the transmutation, which _you_ should also know, doctor."_

_The man gulped. Alice turned her back towards the man, "My father is gone, that's that. And I no longer have the interest to find out what kind of man he truly was."_

"_If that's true…" Marcoh narrowed his eyes, "Why did you and your brother joined the army?"_

_She shrugged, "It was necessary for survival."_

"…_You're not going to tell that Fullmetal boy the truth?"_

"_I might consider it."_

"_And… Why do you still need to cover your left eye?" Alice stopped in her tracks and stiffened at the man's question. Marcoh narrowed his eyes dangerously, knowing he's hit the bull's eye, "Surely after all this time, you managed to find the _truth_ your father was keeping."_

_Her mouth turned dry and her voice was caught in her throat. She gulped and narrowed her eyes, "…No. As a matter of fact, I didn't."_

Alice stopped her hand and looked up towards the window, her gaze softening, "The truth, huh? I still don't know what it means…"

_KNOCK! KNOCK!_

"Alice, may I come in?" Al's soft voice rang from the other side of the door.

Alice glanced back and smiled softly, "Sure."

The door clicked open and the suite of armor walked in, he was fully repaired and able to move freely by now. He closed the door behind him before walking towards the girl, stopping only a couple of feet away from the girl, "I'm surprised you're still up. Aren't you sleepy?"

Alice hummed before rubbing her eyes, "A little, now that you've mentioned it."

He chuckled lightly, catching the girl's attention. "What?" she asked, her eyes were starting to flutter close. Her eye lids were turning heavier as a yawn escaped her lips.

He shook his head, "No, it's nothing at all."

Alice furrowed her eyebrows, "Al, can I ask you something? I think it's a bit personal, though."

Al hummed, "Well, I guess it's alright."

The girl nodded with a smile. "Tell me something… When we first arrived, I saw some ruins of a burned house not far from here." Al stiffened, something Alice clearly noticed but chose to ignore, "Would you mind telling me, what building use to be there?"

Silence fell between the two. Al clanked slightly before he finally found his voice, "It was…" he clenched his hands and looked away from the girl, "…It used to be our home."

Alice's gaze softened as she nodded, "I see…" She furrowed her eyebrows, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to remind you of any unpleasant memories."

Al shook his head lightly, "No, it's fine. I'm kind of used to it all now."

Alice narrowed her eyes, "Alright, if you say so." _'Used to what exactly?'_

"...So, was Winry's pie good?"

"Very! Maybe I can ask her for some to take back to Central."_  
><em>

**The Next Day**

Alice clasped her hands together and closed her eyes. After a moment or so, she reopened them and gazed at the gravestone in front of her. The name was carved perfectly along with the date of death and birth, _Trisha Elric_.

The day was still early and the sun hasn't even rise yet. They were heading back to Central that day. She heard about the two brother's past from Al last night, though he didn't really open up that much, something she couldn't blame him for doing in the first place.

She smiled, "Guess I shouldn't be here at all, should I?"

"No, you shouldn't," a voice replied.

Alice wasn't surprised nor was she concerned to the boy that decided to kneel down next to her. She smirked, "Well then, what are _you_ doing here, Seth?"

Seth sighed and placed his hand on top of the stone. He smiled and admired the rough surface of the rock, though it somehow felt soft at the same time, "Looking for someone," he answered simply. He glanced towards his sister as his gaze softened, "What about you?"

She nodded, "Same reason."

"Is the person here yet?"

Alice raised her eyebrows slightly and looked at her brother. He wasn't looking at her, but she could see the hardened gaze kept in the boy's forest green orbs. She hummed slightly before looking down to her lap, where a bouquet of flower rests. Her gaze softened, "No, if the person was here... I can think of a couple names that would get stunned."

Alice placed the bouquet down. She placed her hands on the ground where Ed's mother has been buried.

…

…

…

Alice raised her eyebrows slightly and widened her eyes, her expression showing as if she's just seen the dead rise from the ground or something worse.

Seth paid no attention to the girl before standing up and turning around, walking away. Alice took a deep breath and pulled back her hands, her now shivering hands. She brought a hand up to her chest and gripped her shirt tightly, _'Who was… Who was buried under this ground?'_

**Later in the Train**

Ed sighed and crossed his hands behind his head, leaning comfortably on the chair. He smiled, "We're finally heading back to Central."

Alice, who was sitting next to the boy, scoffed, "You just want to get those damn researches Marcoh told you about, right?"

Ed glanced at the girl from the corner of his eyes and smirked, "You are smart."

Alice yawned and rubbed her eyes. She cursed, _'Damn it… I stayed up too late last night after talking with Al…'_

"Sleepy?" she glanced to the side and saw Ed looking at her with a questioning gaze. He furrowed his eyebrows, "Did you even sleep at all?" He brought a finger up and pointed towards the girl's face, "There are bags under your eyes."

Alice grunted and looked away, "That's none of your business, Edward."

"Okay, okay, no need to get all touchy," Ed replied lightly.

He glanced down towards his palm and narrowed his eyes, _'…Marcoh's research files…'_

"_Perhaps you can find the truth within the truth."_

Ed clenched his hands and grunted, _'What did he mean by that? Why does everyone involved in the Philosopher Stone like to tell riddle so much?'_

He widened his eyes when he felt a slight tug on his shoulder. He glanced to the side and saw the extra weight that decided to lean on him, Alice. The girl must've been really exhausted, she was already knocked out cold, and she didn't even seem like she realized that she fell asleep.

Ed narrowed his eyes before scrunching away, only to have the girl lean closer to him. He sighed, _'Damn it…_' He looked to the opposite side and saw no one else around. He glanced towards the girl again before softening his gaze. After admitting defeat, he decided to just let the girl sleep, plus he wouldn't even want to know if she just happens to be very cranky when woken up against her will.

Alice smiled slightly in her sleep and gripped Ed's sleeve, you can only imagine how surprised the boy was. "…Daddy…" she mumbled.

Ed widened his eyes when he heard her. The way she was at the moment, she looked like any normal girl. Her sleeping face made her look more like a child and a lot more vulnerable, how wrong that would be. Ed sighed and looked away, "She'd definitely kill me if I tell her about this."

**Pumpbie: "Don't you think you made her act like a little kid saying _'daddy'_ like that?"**

**Purin: "Well, yeah, a bit... But I ran out of ideas and when I wrote this my head was swirly, literally! My hair looked like a crow's nest..."**

**Pumpbie: "Okay... And you're setting their first fluff as the whole _'sleeping girl leaning on the boy'_ thing? I thought you said it was going to be after their fight again."**

**Purin: *shrug* "I wanted to. But that's still too long from now and it'll be as if the romance didn't progress at all..."**

**Pumpbie: "Oh, yeah... There is that."**

**Please Review!**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Please forgive me! Technical errors for weeks and I've finally come up with an easier way to handle it but, I already passed weeks after my deadline!**

**Pumpbie: "Well, you could've at least sent them an author's note or something…"**

**Purin: "TT_TT I couldn't even get through to update an author's note. It was horrible!"**

**Please enjoy this Chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood!**

**Chapter 12**

Alice looked at the woman with a bored look. She placed her chin on her palm and her elbow by the surface of her desk, "So, how long has it been?"

Ross furrowed her eyebrows and sighed, "It's been exactly four days since those two have been so focused on those researches."

Alice smirked, "Heh, I have to admit, they've got some dedication to keep this up."

**Few Days Earlier, In the Train Station**

Alice growled under her breath, her arms crossed over her chest, and her eyes narrowed dangerously. She glanced to the side and was greeted by Ed's equally intense glare, along with the awfully noticeable hand mark on his cheek.

The boy's eye twitched slightly, "What the hell did you slap me for? I told you that you were the one that decided to sleep on my shoulder and wouldn't let go, it's not like I was willing!"

Alice grunted and looked away, a slight pinkish color staining her puffed cheeks, "Well, you could've at least woke me up!"

"So you can what? So you can slap me earlier?" he shot back.

The two continued to glare at each other and exchanging insults as if being sent off to a whole different world. The rest of the group merely stared at the two, knowing perfectly well that there was no point in trying to break them apart from yet another of their ridiculous arguments.

Seth sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, _'Is it just me, or does Alice keeps blushing around Ed?'_

"Seth!"

Seth turned and raised his eyebrows slightly. A girl with slightly tanned skin and long mid back length black hair was running up towards him. Recognizing the girl instantly, the boy pulled out a small smile, "Arra, you're early."

The girl stopped in front of the man and looked up with an exhausted look, "Yeah, well, I wanted to sleep in but I couldn't go back to sleep after 3 in the morning."

Seth chuckled lightly, "Well, that sounds like something you would do."

Alice blinked and broke her glare before glancing back, catching in the sight of her brother and the dark haired girl. And her first comment, "Arra, what are you doing here?"

"Mm?" the girl looked pass Seth and towards Alice. She narrowed her eyes and grunted before walking passes the boy and towards Alice, stopping a couple of feet in front of her before crossing her arms over her chest, "Did you forget again? I told you I'd be here to pick you guys up, do you remember?"

"Nope, I completely forgot," she replied with a light scoff.

Arra sighed, "You've got the memory of a gold fish, don't you?"

Alice shrugged and glanced back. She raised her eyebrows slightly, "Oh, yeah, you guys haven't met properly, right?"

"This is the Elric brothers," Alice said, gesturing towards the blonde haired boy and the large suit of armor behind her. She smirked and glanced back slightly, "The younger one is Alphonse, and his older brother is Edward, the Fullmetal Alchemist that I told you about."

"Oh…" Arra furrowed her eyebrows, "But why is he wearing armor?"

Alice grinned and coughed slightly, "Actually, the shrimpy one is Edward."

A vein appeared on Ed's forehead as he took a step forward, closer towards the girl, "Who the hell are you calling an over sized scrunchy puny little ant?"

Alice's grin widened as she accepted the boy's glare, "Heh, don't blame me for your lack of height, little boy."

"You're one to talk! Considering out height isn't that much difference!" he shot back.

She chuckled and shrugged before looking away, "Like I said, small girls are cute, small guys are… You. Well, you know what I mean, don't you?"

Seth sighed before stepping in between the two and literally lifting Alice by the back of her top, placing her behind him and more importantly, away from Ed. He rubbed the back of his neck, "Guess I'll have to finish the introduction. This girl here is-"

"Arianna," she cut in. She smiled brightly, "My name is Arianna Gale, pleasure to meet you."

Al hummed slightly, "Wait, didn't Alice and Seth call you _'Arra'_?"

She nodded, "It's a nickname, you know… Arianna is a bit too long and it sounds kind of weird on me, so to make it easier, they call me Arra, simple as that. You guys can call me _'Arra'_ or _'Arianna'_, I don't really care…"

"And you're Alice's friend?" Ed asked with a different tone.

"Yes…" she answered with an unsure tone.

His face paled for a moment as he looked away, "Oh…"

…

Alice glanced to the side when she felt a slight tug on her shoulder, meeting Arra's questioning gaze, "So, mind letting me in on what they're here for? Seeing that you of all people are with them it must be something big and life risking, right?" she concluded lightly.

Alice smirked before looking back towards the scene in front of her, "You could say that."

Arra nodded before looking back straight ahead, "So, I'm guessing they weren't expecting something as inconvenient as this to suddenly happen in Central, were they?"

"Nope, they weren't."

The grand library the two Elric brothers were so anxious in getting to, was now nothing more than a pile of rubbles and ashes with all of its precious information and knowledge crushed, burned, and possibly gone forever, nearly impossible to be replaced. Some of the smokes were still rising from the ruins, covering some of the sunlight and merely proving its point that the library is destroyed from top to bottom.

Ed's eye twitched slightly as he stared at the scene, "W-What the hell happened here?"

Alice smirked, _'Well, well, looks like someone else managed to get here before we did. And by the looks of it, there's no way a normal human being could've done this sort of damage in such a short time.'_

Seth stared at the scene for a moment before looking back towards his sister. She looked at him as her smirk widened. Seth smiled and looked back towards Ed and Al, "Hey, we'll be heading back, alright?"

Al glanced back and nodded slightly, "Alright…"

Ed growled and glared at the scene, _'…Damn it!'_

**Present Time**

Arra looked at the two boys with slight pity before turning that look into a bored one, "So, tell me again how long you two boys plan on wasting your time on those research and thus locking yourselves in this damp, dark, and sad little room?" she asked as she gazed at the two.

Ed growled under his breath, "That's none of your business!" He looked up and the bags under his eyes became clear under the dim sun's light, "Besides, what the hell are you two doing here?"

Arra and Alice looked at Ed with grins on their faces as they continued to stare at the two brothers from one corner of the room before simultaneously answering, "If you're not going to listen to what we have to say, at least we can get some amusement out of your miseries!"

Ed narrowed his eyes and stood before walking over to the girl. He stood in front of her before scrunching down slightly so they would be the same eye level, "I thought you were the one that said you didn't want anything to do with this stuff."

Alice smiled wickedly, "That's right. But if you're so stubborn as to find out anyways, then I'll have to watch you from behind." Her gaze softened slightly, "And I guess the lost little girl will have to trust the military dog's instincts to get home."

Ed blinked and raised an eyebrow, "What are you-"

"That, and," she leaned forward before flicking the boy's forehead, pushing him back slightly. She grinned, "You're still supposed to do whatever I tell you to, remember?"

Ed blinked and paled a moment before looking away, "Damn it… I was hoping you'd already forget about that stupid deal by now…"

**Later in Alice and Seth's Apartment**

"Alice, you sure this is the wisest thing to do?" Seth asked as he played with the chain dangling from his silver pocket watch. He glanced back and pass the sofa, towards the kitchen where Alice could be seen standing in front of the stove, "Well?"

She sighed and looked down towards her hands. She narrowed her eyes before grabbing the knife, "Do we really have a choice? They won't listen to reason until its way too late… And it won't be long until they start banging on our doors and demanding answers, right?"

Seth hummed slightly and glanced down towards the book in his lap, "True." He opened the first pages of the book and smiled, "So did you read them again? Those researches, I mean."

Alice scoffed, "Yeah, I did. They're as damn complicated as I last saw them." She brought down the sharp knife and cut a tiny bit of her own skin, letting the red liquid drip to the surface of the table, "…I miss him…"

"…"

Alice furrowed her eyebrows, "Is Edward and Alphonse going to be alright?"

Seth sighed and threw his head back, "Who knows?" He looked down towards the picture of a transmutation circle in Alice's notebook before smiling, "So, can you make me some sweets for tomorrow?"

Alice raised her eyebrows slightly before glancing back towards the boy, "Sweets? Where are you going?"

He smiled and gazed towards the drawing of a transmutation circle which was slipped in the notebook, "There's a little business I need to take care of…"

**Back with Ed and Al**

Ed and Al stared down towards the floor. Ed's hand was crushed into a knuckle while Al held his head in his hands. Ross and Brosh were both looking at them with slightly widened eyes, "E-Ed?"

He grunted and held back his anger, "…The ingredients to make a Philosopher Stone…" He looked down slightly, his bangs shadowing his golden orbs, "…Are life human beings!"

_GASP!_

…

The two brothers walked down the street. The two were lost for words. What was there to say? That their only hope of retrieving their bodies was actually a cursed crimson stone which was made of thousands and possibly millions innocent human souls? Using something like that was no better than killing innocent people with their own hands…

"…Brother?" Al was the first to break the uncomfortable silence.

"Mm?"

"I… I have a really bad feeling about this," he said, his voice a bit shaky.

Ed grunted and gazed down to his feet, "So do I…"

The two continued to walk for some time before Ed stopped, nearly causing the surprised Al to bump into him, instead slumping slightly before regaining his footing. "Brother, what's the matter?"

Ed turned quiet before he narrowed his eyes, "…Alice and Seth…" he muttered with a deep and dark voice. He glanced back towards Al with wide slightly enraged eyes, "They both knew about the Philosopher Stone and its secrets, didn't they?"

**Purin: "YES! YES! YES! I FINALLY UPDATED!"**

**Pumpbie: "You left them waiting for weeks, maybe even months…"**

**Purin: "TT_TT I know… Please forgive me! I even made this chapter longer than the others, though when I read it again it's actually hard to tell…" *bows deeply***

**Pumpbie: "So then, when are you going to update again?"**

**Purin: "As soon as possible! And this time I mean it! But, in case I get stuck on writer's block (I curse thee) again, please support my creativity and energy by sending reviews! I wouldn't be surprised if some of you decided to flame me for disappearing after so long…"**

**Pumpbie: "I would though."**

**Purin: "No one asked you!"**

**Pumpbie: "Someone's a little grumpy…"**

**Please Review!**


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: Hello everyone!**

**Purin: "I will not let you down!"**

**Pumpbie: "That is until your parents start limiting your time to go online again, right? Say, around the time for the school final exam?"**

**Purin: *puffed cheeks* "That's still a couple of months away, so I have until then to get Alice and Ed together, or at least clear some of the confusions about Alice and Seth's past…"**

**Pumpbie: "What about their dad?"**

**Purin: "Nah… I already thought about it, and I think I should just tell that near the end of the story. I haven't even told you about it, right?"**

**Pumpbie: "And that is my fate as a co-author."**

**Purin: *sigh* "You know, your ideas are great and you can obviously write your own story with your own language. Too bad you're too lazy to bring yourself to the screen of your computer and type…"**

**Pumpbie: *grins* "Yup. Please enjoy this Chapter!"**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood!**

**Chapter 13**

Ed and Al blinked as they gazed up the building. The building was an apartment, it seemed old but at least it looked strong enough to hold up for a couple more years of fashion. The bricks were grayish with some parts of them painted with random colors, the work of hooligans probably. The rooms were on top one another with each of them having their own terrace.

"This is it?"

Ed looked down towards the folded piece of paper in his hand before looking up and nodding, "Well, this has to be it… That is, if Arra was a good source of information to begin with."

"Let's find out then," Al said before walking towards the entrance, Ed following behind him.

**Later**

"Let's see…" Ed muttered as the two walked down the hallway. He furrowed his eyebrows and gazed at the room's numbers as he continued, "201… 202… 203…" he raised his eyebrows slightly, "Here it is, 204! Al, I found it!"

"Coming," he answered before walking back towards his brother.

Ed stared at the door for a moment and back towards the piece of paper who knows how many times before taking a deep breath. He glanced back towards Al and received a nod, which he replied back with the same one before bringing up his hand towards the door.

_KNOCK! KNOCK!_

"Ugh… I'm coming!"

The two sweat dropped when they heard a couple more grunts and some fallen metals or woods hit the floor, a couple of crashing sounds, before something or someone hit the other side of the door with a loud 'thump'.

The knobs turned a couple of times before the door slammed open, and a very pissed off looking Seth was soon sending a death glare towards the two, "What?"

Al blinked, "Uh… Seth, are you alright?"

Seth blinked a couple of times before his once tensed shoulders slumped down, "Oh, it's you two." He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, "Let me guess…" he opened his eyes and looked at them with a bored look, "you got our address from Arra and now you want to talk to Alice, right?"

"Uh-"

"Well, come in then, I guess," he said with a wave of his hand as he walked back inside, leaving the door wide open so the two could come in freely.

The two walked in, surprisingly, despite the commotion earlier the place was still in well condition. The apartment wasn't anything fancy or spacious. There were stacks of papers placed on a table at the corner, though they seemed to be in perfect order. There was a kitchen with a table enough for four and they had a great view from the terrace. There's also one bedroom.

The two looked at the slightly open door towards the bedroom before looking back and taking a clear look at Seth. His hair was messed up and he was still wearing his usual leather pants, though he was lacking his top…

Ed blinked, "Where's Alice?"

"Huh?" Seth looked back at them before pointing towards the room they were staring at previously, "She's still sleeping. She'll kill me if I wake her up now."

Al tilted his head, "You two sleep in the same room?"

Seth sighed, "Yeah…" He raised a finger and began drawing a circle in the air, "It's hard to survive with her sleeping. She may be overly self conscious at times, but when she's asleep it doesn't matter who you are. She'll hug you and snuggle you until you can't breathe…" He looked at the room for a moment before smirking, "But I guess you can see parts of her you can never see when she's awake-"

He glanced back and blinked while he stared at the two after finishing his sentence. He raised an eyebrow, "What's wrong? Why are you two looking at me like that?"

"…Seth…" The two raised their finger and pointed at the boy accusingly, "We'll never look at you the same way ever again!"

He looked at both their fingers before realizing what they meant. He grinned before pushing their fingers aside, "Oh please…" He placed his thumb and index finger under his chin, "You two aren't exactly grounded innocent either. I have the excuse of being her brother, but you two don't. Even if she tends to act like that," his grin darkened, "you still want to see, don't you?"

"Don't be stupid!"

_BRAK! BRUK! BRAK!_

Seth chuckled as he held up both hands, "Okay, okay, calm down will you?" he said as he looked at the two. He stopped his laugh and looked back at them, "I don't think I've ever felt this much joy to teasing someone before…"

Ed growled and glared at the boy, "Why you little…"

"Will you two quit it?" The three raised their eyebrows slightly before glancing back.

Alice stepped out of the bedroom with her arms crossed over her chest. Alice was only wearing a long and baggy plain white pajama top which reached her thighs. She wasn't wearing her usual eye patch but her misplaced long bangs were enough to cover her usual eye. She growled, "I already have a headache, I don't think I need you to add more pain in my suffering, Edward, Alphonse."

The two stared at the girl with slightly wide eyes before Seth placed a hand on both their shoulders. He scrunched closer to them and whispered, "Told you."

Alice sighed and walked towards the table stacked up with papers before grabbing her eye patch, which was nearly buried under her work. She brushed her hair back and tied the patch in place. She glanced back towards the three before her gaze fell towards Seth. She narrowed her eyes and growled like a wild beast, "Seth… I thought I told you I didn't want anyone waking me up this early, especially not today and not by these two idiots!"

He chuckled nervously, "Heheh… I know but, it just sort of happened and all that. Besides…" he smiled before scrunching his head down so he and the two brothers were at the same level, putting on a false pout, "you wouldn't turn these two down, would you?"

Ed glanced towards the boy and raised an eyebrow, _'What is he-?'_

Alice stared at her brother for a moment before sighing, "Honestly…"

**More later**

Alice gazed at the two with a bored look. She placed her cheek on her palm while her elbow rests by the surface of the table. She looked away, "Yes, you're right. I knew the Philosopher Stones were made out of human souls." She sighed, "I knew you'd figure it out sooner or later, but I didn't think you'd be able to break Marcoh's code this soon."

Ed grunted, "Why didn't you say anything? You knew we were looking for that damn stone! What if we ended up using it-"

"Were you honestly expecting me to tell you?" Alice placed down her hand and glared at the two, "People have desires they want to fulfill, aside from you two, if people knew about the existence of the stone they won't hesitate to look for it. Just because you two happen to have seen things others haven't…" she narrowed her eyes, "that doesn't make you any different."

Ed narrowed his eyes and gritted his teeth, his knuckles turning paler by the minute. He slammed his hand on the table, "What makes you think you've got the right to say that? You don't know anything about what we've been through!"

She stared at his deep golden orbs for a moment before scoffing. She gazed down to her lap, "…The pain of losing someone because you've performed the taboo…"

Alice's words were in slight whisper, but Al somehow managed to hear it, _'Alice?'_

"…"

"…"

Alice looked up and towards Ed, who was still glaring at her. Without realizing, she smiled, "You can judge me any way you like, Edward, but…" she stood, "I still won't change my mind about you until you proofed it yourself."

Ed raised his eyebrows slightly, "What are you-?"

"Now then, since you're already here, why don't I just make extra breakfast for you guys?" Alice asked out of the blue.

"Heh?"

…

Seth smiled brightly as he stepped out of the bathroom. He was wearing a white slight form fitting top with a pair of fresh leather pants and his hair was already fixed from their previous disaster. He began sniffing the air and humming happily, "Finally! I was wondering when you were going to start making breakfast, and I'm starving!"

Ed and Al blinked as they looked at Alice, saying simultaneously, "You can cook?"

Alice looked back at them, a spoon in her mouth. She took the spoon from her mouth before pouting, "Of course I can cook! Who do you think takes care of all the housework around here? You didn't honestly expect Seth would be doing them, did you?"

Ed blinked and looked away, "Actually, it's pretty easy to imagine- GAH!" He was cut short when Alice threw a pan at his face.

She scoffed before drawing her attention back towards the stove, "It's not wise to insult a girl who's cooking, Edward. You don't know what kind of kitchen utensils might fly to your face."

Al sweat dropped, "In some ways, Alice is just like Winry…"

Seth smiled, "Really? I didn't really notice that."

Ed grunted and wiped his nose, "Yeah, they both hit real hard."

**After Seth left (early morning train) and Alice finished dressing**

Alice yawned and rubbed her eye, catching Al's attention, "You seem really tired Alice."

She grunted, "And whose fault was it that I got woken up so damn early in the morning, huh?"

He chuckled lightly, "Right…"

"Anyways, I'm not usually one to just give up the fight but," she glanced towards Ed, who was also looking at her with a serious look. She narrowed her eyes, "You need to be careful with what you know. Other people are also looking for the stone, some good and can be taught some sense, but some…"

Ed raised an eyebrow, "But some-?"

She shook her head, "But some just doesn't know when to quit." She looked up and gazed at the two, "Now that you know the stone's secret, are you… You know, still going to look for it?"

Ed looked straight at her, his gaze unfazed with whatever emotion was locked up in her eyes. He sighed and crossed his arms behind his head, "Who knows? I'll be honest, I don't really get what you think of me, or how you view all of us…"

He looked back towards her and turned back his position so he was sitting in a more suitable manner, "But, just so you know," he smirked, "I have my own ways to find out what I don't know."

Alice blinked and stared at him for a moment before chuckling, "Don't I know it. You'd go far as break one of the greatest taboos in alchemy just to do it…"

He nodded, "Exactly."

Al smiled mentally, _'They may fight and argue a lot. But, seeing them talk so calmly like this…_' He giggled, _'The warmth they bring kind of feels like being home again…'_

"What's wrong, Al?" Ed raised an eyebrow, "Why are you giggling to yourself?"

Al panicked slightly and waved his hand dismissively, "Oh, no, no! It's nothing at all!" He chuckled, "I was just thinking… You know…"

**Late That Night**

Ed and Al poked their heads around the corner and glanced around. Ed narrowed his eyes at the sight of the large building and the two guards standing by in front of the gates. He looked back at Al, "This is the 5th laboratory, its abandoned years ago," he raised an eyebrow, "but they have guards at the front gate? That's a bit over protective, don't you think?"

Al nodded, "Looks like there's more than meets the eye."

**Purin: "Pudding… Chocolate Pudding… Banana Pudding… Milk Pudding… Yeah, definitely Chocolate or Milk pudding, there's no doubt in my mind!"**

**Pumpbie: "What are you doing?"**

**Purin: "I don't know. I'm just thinking up puddings and all that. By the way, did you get those story lines I sent you?"**

**Pumpbie: *nods* "Yeah, I did. It's really up to you how you want to get Seth done, though. But what's going to happen to Arra?"**

**Purin: "Oh, that… Well, I'm **_**pretty**_** sure she's going to survive until the end…"**

**Pumpbie: "You're **_**pretty**_** sure?" *glare***

**Purin: "Heheh… Yup…"**

**Please Review!**


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: All who despises writer's block raise your hands!**

**Purin: *raises hand in desperation* "I'm so screwed… It took nearly all the contents and dedication in my whole body to get this chapter done…"**

**Pumpbie: "Want me to tell you how long your writer's block was?"**

**Purin: *sniff* "No… Please forgive me…"**

**Pumpbie: "Prepare for the disciplinary of your life!"**

**Please enjoy this Chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood!**

**Chapter 14**

"Say it," Alice mumbled as she continued to write down in her note book, not bothering to lift her gaze.

Ed's eye twitched slightly as he felt a vicious growl escaping his lips, "…Shut up…"

She sighed and closed her book before looking at Ed, "Hmmm, let's see. I told you to be careful and actually considered offering you my help if needed, but the next day I found you here in the hospital after sneaking around in an abandoned laboratory, which you managed to blow up in the process." She smiled darkly, "Of course, Edward, I won't say a thing about this- Say it!"

"There was no prove that _I_ was the one that blew the building up!" Ed grunted and looked away, "You were right, happy?"

She smirked before leaning forward and grabbing the basket of fruit she brought him earlier, "Quite." She took out an apple before biting into the fruit's soft flesh, making crunching sounds in the process.

"Hey, what the hell?"

She scoffed and looked away, "You didn't listen to me, so I'm taking one of my apples back. Besides, I haven't had breakfast," she took another bite from the apple and pouted, "or dinner."

"Hell if I care! Give it back!"

"Sorry, it's already in my digestive systems, Edward! If you want it back, you'll just have to cut me open!"

"I'd be happy to if I wasn't stuck in this damn bed!"

"Heh, your loss…"

Winry smiled happily and muttered a small giggle as she gazed at the two in amusement, "They seem like little kids playing in the play ground, don't they?"

Seth nodded with his arms crossed over his chest, "Yeah but, is it really alright for them to be causing this much noise? There are other patients in this hospital, right?"

She nodded, "That's true…"

"Say, where's Al? I haven't seen him," Seth asked, creating a silence in the room.

Ed raised his eyebrows slightly, "Well, I was told that he got a lecture like I did, other than that, I don't know."

Seth hummed and nodded. He clapped his hands together, "Well, this was a pleasant visit, but I need to go now," he said as he stood back to his feet.

"Me too," Alice said picking up her bag and throwing the basket of fruits back to Ed, who caught it with two hands. She glanced back at him and smirked, "Try to actually use your time in the hospital to get better instead of coming up with another suicide plan, alright, Edward?"

He scoffed and crossed his arms over his chest, "Since when do I have to listen to you?"

Alice walked over to her brother before glancing back at the boy with a wider smirk, "Since it's been proven that I'm right and you're wrong."

Seth chuckled, causing Ed to growl, "And I guess you find this amusing?"

"Yeah, how did you figure that out?" he said with a sarcastic tone and an amused smirk. He chuckled again when the boy pulled out another outburst before calming down to the sudden shot of pain after his movement.

Alice sighed and looked away, scratching her cheek uncomfortably, "This doesn't look good…"

"Ah… Did I upset the injured little boy?"

"WHO THE HELL ARE YOU CALLING SO SMALL HE'D GET SQUASHED BY A RAT?"

Moments Later

"You know it wasn't wise to insult him like that in his condition," she glanced to the side, "or in your current physical condition."

Seth chuckled, "Right, right, that's rich coming from someone who'll collapse after five minutes of using her own alchemy." He looked at his sister as his gaze softened, "And you haven't told me how you managed to stay in your fight with Ed for that long… I could only come up with one explanation and I didn't like every point of view of it."

Alice turned quiet for a moment before scoffing, "Well judging from how you say it, what you have in mind is probably the answer…"

Seth sighed, "That explains your streak of nightmares these days. I know that because you keep sleep talking."

She blushed, "What do I sleep talk about?"

"You know the usual, mom, dad, that night," he paused, "Ed and Al. Seems you've turned quite attached to them, Alice." He smirked, "Want to talk about it?"

She blushed and looked down to her feet, "Maybe… LATER."

"You know, you are in your time for puberty, maybe there's something else on your mind-

"DON'T GO THERE! I WILL NOT HAVE THAT SORT OF DISCUSSION WITH YOU OF ALL PEOPLE, BROTHER!"

Seth merely chuckled. Alice sighed and looked towards her left, raising her eyebrows slightly as she gazed at the sight. Her steps stopped, catching Seth's attention, "What's wrong?"

"…Seth, why don't you go on ahead?"

He gazed at his sister for a moment. Seeing the odd look at her face, he shrugged before walking away, "Don't stay for too long," he said as he rounded a corner.

Alice took a deep breath before walking down the dark, shadowy hallway. She stopped once she neared the end of the hallway and furrowed her eyebrows, tilting her head to one side, "Alphonse? Is that you?" she asked as she gazed at the large figure hidden in the shadows.

"…Hey, Alice…" he mumbled softly.

She was about to step closer before getting a sickening feeling in her stomach that told her to keep her distance as they were. She stood straight, "Is something bothering you? You've been acting weird since you and your brother came back from the 5th laboratory." Her gaze hardened slightly, hearing him twitched at the mention of his brother and the 5th laboratory, "Did you see something?"

He stayed silent for a moment before looking up at the young girl, "…Alice…can I ask you a question?"

"Mm?"

**Later that Day**

Seth gazed at the crumbled area of what used to be the 5th laboratory with a distasteful look. He began sniffing the air and held back a cough before he pinches his nose, holding in his breath, "Ugh… Those homunculus were definitely here alright," he mumbled as he shoved his hands back in his coat's pocket.

Alice furrowed her eyebrows and glanced around. She looked back towards her brother with narrowed eyes, "Can you tell who they were?"

He shook his head, "Nope, the scent is too mixed with the ruins. It's almost impossible for me to determine it in my condition." He grinned, showing canine like fangs that looked sharp enough to bite of someone's hand, "But I can bet my entire pay check this month that there were two of them," he paused, "and another two that smelled just like Al."

She hummed before looking down towards her open palms. She kneeled down and placed her hand on the ground. She narrowed her eyes, "…How much would you bet that one of them was Envy?"

"Hmmm… Let me guess, his partner in crime was Lust?" he asked, though it was more of a statement than a question.

"…So they're not only after Hohenheim, they're also after Edward and Alphonse."

Seth sighed and rubbed the back of his neck before looking away, "Man, this puzzle just keeps getting more and more confusing every time, it's giving me a headache…" he glanced at Alice from the corner of his eyes, "you still keeping connection with that guy?"

She nodded, "He understands my alchemy and now I can't cut my connection with him."

"Figures," he said numbly.

The two began going their separate ways to investigate the scene, each with their own things to search for in those crumbled ruins. Seth's thoughts were set on the two other people that accompanied the homunculus and the person Alice had been forced to stay connected to, while Alice's thoughts…were set on some people in particular, two of them having the need to spend some time in the hospital, while the others she has no clue as to their whereabouts.

Seth placed his hand on a broken down piece of wall, humming. He pulled back his hand and gripped them into strong knuckles before bringing them forward in great speed. He smirked when the concrete began crumbling as his gaze was cleared to what appeared to be a large paper stuck on yet another piece of concrete. He studied the picture carefully before his eyes widened, green orbs suddenly filled with fear, _'T-These are…'_

"_Father, what is that?"_

"_Oh this? This circle here…is what's going to change our world forever."_

Seth gulped as a drop of cold sweat rolled down his face, "…Father…"

**A/N: I am so touched that a lot of you guys stayed with the story TT-TT And some of you have really cute pen names, heheh…**

**Purin: "So, this is the 14****th**** chapter, I wonder when I can update the next one, hmmm…"**

**Pumbpie: "You sure you're not going to have **_**another **_**writer's block after you update this one chapter?"**

**Purin: "I'll try my best!" *raises hand in determination* "I'll do everything in my power to keep going to the end! Oh, and in this chapter, I started to show hints to Alice's alchemy and Seth's little secret… Anyone who can figure it out first is awesome in my book!"**

**Pumpbie: "Right…"**

**ADDED PART OF THE AUTHOR'S NOTE**

**Ehm, okay, so this part isn't going to be regularly added, just when I want to. So, to make things clear, I am in my exams time and won't be able to update often, but I will not, I repeat, I WILL NOT ABANDON THIS STORY.**

**Now then, what else was I suppose to say here?**

**Oh yeah! For all of you who have some questions or wish for some spoilers in some sort, please feel free to contact me through Private Messages. And, I guess I should post a picture of Alice, huh? Well, I'll try…but the last time I drew her was…last year… I just hope I can still draw her.**

**And just for added information, Alice's alchemy is very sensitive when it come down to offensive uses, so she might not be able to join much of the fighting scenes. And just for future references, is anyone here against my character 'Seth Lockhart', any hating or something around that?**

**Well, that's all I wanted to say…**

**Please Review!**


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: So, ummm… I think I need to pay more attention to smaller details in the story.**

**Pumpbie: "I'm impressed, you didn't have another writer's block."**

**Purin: "Actually, I did… I just manage to push myself further…real further…" *smiles brightly* "Also, I'd like to thank all of you who have supported me through reviews! They're like my source of strength! BWAHAHAHAHA!"**

**Pumpbie: "Sure they are…"**

**Purin: *pout***

**Please enjoy this Chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood.**

**Chapter 15**

Ed blinked, "She's gone?"

Roy nodded with the least possible amount of interest in his expression. He glanced up from his work slightly and gazed at the blonde haired boy, "She said she had some unfinished matters to attend to and that she won't know when she'll be back." He looked back towards his paperwork and sighed, "Oddly enough, Seth didn't come along with her on this one."

Al hummed, "I wonder what's going on that she won't even tell Seth…"

Roy shrugged. "Oh, I almost forgot," he placed down his papers and opened his drawer before he began rummaging through its contents. After another minute of what seemed to be a slightly endless search, he pulled out a small piece of paper before bringing it up from the brothers to see, "Here, she left this for you, Edward," he said as he placed the paper on his desk and pushing it towards the two.

Ed took the paper without a word before opening it and gazing at the writing. He blinked, _'Her writing is a bit messier than I thought…'_ he thought to himself as he continued to read.

"She wrote it in a hurry," Roy said, "her writing is normally really well written, but looking at those ones…she might have been chased by a pack of wild hounds while writing it."

He sweat dropped, "Yeah, but… What the hell is this?"

_**Organize the old manuscripts on my desk**_

_**Clean the mess from your last visit**_

_**Take care of the case files on my desk (they're all from the troubles you've caused so I'm not going to have anything to do with them…)**_

_**Make sure nothing happens to the experiment in my office**_

_**If anything happens to the contents of my office…I WILL KILL YOU.**_

Al gazed at the writing before giggling at the end of the message, "You know, Brother, in a way…you two are very similar to one another."

"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked as he gazed at his brother bitterly.

"You're both hotheaded," Roy pointed out. He smirked, "I read it as well, seems like she's beginning to take your rank as her slave seriously. In case you can't figure it out…those are the chores she wants you to finish before she comes back."

Ed's eye twitched, "…She's…" He crumbled the piece of paper and glared towards an invisible wall at his left side, "She's treating me like I'm her personal helper!"

"Technically you are at the moment."

He stiffened. He sighed before looking back down at the writing, "Darn it, I can't really finish this whole thing right now…or start at all." He narrowed his eyes, _'I was actually going to ask her to come with us this once…just to ask her a bit more about the Philosopher Stone and Human Transmutations.'_ He blinked and looked back towards Roy, "Oh, yeah, does that mean Seth is still around?"

**A Little Later**

"What? Come with the two of you? Why would I do that?" Seth asked. "And didn't Alice left some chores for you to handle, Edward?" he added.

The boy was apparently doing some chores Alice had also left for him to do at the apartment. She asked for him to clean up the apartment because she said that it had so many similarities to a junk alley now and it was his fault, which, of course, he denies.

"Because…" Ed began rubbing the back of his neck, "your sister isn't around and my only option left is you."

Seth blinked with a dumbfounded look plastered on his face, "So I'm your last resort?"

"Pretty much."

He chuckled, "I'm honored." He looked back down towards the papers in his hand, "Listen, Ed, I'd love to go but, I have some of my own things to take care of…" he looked up slightly from his work, "but just out of pure curiosity… Where are you going?"

He looked to the side and avoided the boy's gaze, "…Well…"

**The Next Day**

"I can't believe you're honestly going to come along," Ed said as he gazed at the dark haired boy that now stands before him.

Seth smirked, "Well, it just so happens that I have some business in the area around Dublith. So I don't see any harm in tagging along with the ride."

Al hummed and gazed at Seth from his seat. Seth always seemed like a hard character to read, just like his sister, but he never really put that much thought into it. They both seem to like disappearing a lot and making others worry before coming back and acting as if nothing significant happened and in time… The idea of them disappearing all of the sudden was a normal thing, but they both seem to carry their own secrets. There's very little the army knows about them.

Alice is a great researcher and her analytical skills are amazing, but Seth once said to him that her body couldn't survive fighting that much because of a certain trauma that involved their father. He also said that she actually had a soft spot for a couple of things, things that if they knew they'd probably be able to get through her easier. She's also skilled in altering weapons or even creating them herself, and she can also handle the housework. Seth said that no matter how her sister seemed… She's always _hiding_.

And then there's Seth himself. His brother's theory of how Seth might have transmuted his father wasn't impossible, but it wasn't exactly a strong theory either. Seth might seem like a strong person, but he doubt that the guy actually had the heart to do something like that. Also, whenever he watched Seth fight with Alex, he always had an odd feeling… Like something wasn't quite right about his way of movement, it almost seemed _inhuman_. Even though he's a state alchemist, he barely ever uses alchemy in battle and instead stayed with his fist and weapon.

'_They're both so mysterious… And their pasts are even harder to understand than ours…'_ Al thought. He glanced up towards the sky and sighed, _'I wonder… Why are they both hiding? Who are they hiding from?'_

"Hey, Al!" The suit of armor looked straight ahead and saw that Ed and Seth were both looking at him while standing in front of a train. Ed raised an eyebrow, "What are you doing? Get on the train before it leaves!"

"O-Oh, alright, wait for me!"

**Meanwhile with Alice**

Alice furrowed her eyebrows as she gazed at her own reflection. She was holding her eye patch in her left hand and gripping it tightly. Her right eye glow a dim color of lavender and her left eye was still closed. She took a deep breath before slowly opening it, it was only halfway opened before she felt an unbearable pain shot up through her veins and quickly fell to her knees with her hands holding on to the left side of her face.

She whimpered as she gazed at the ground, "…It still hurts…" She gritted her teeth and curled up into a ball, closing both eyes tightly, "…Daddy…I never…" She looked back straight ahead with her right eye now open and it glistened, tears threatening to form, "…I never wanted to be an alchemist… Why couldn't you understand that?" she shuddered with a shaky voice.

She glanced down to the floor and before she realized it… A drop of tear rolled down her face.

**At the Same Time, Elsewhere**

Seth's eyes snapped open as his breath heightened. He turned to his side and watched the scenery continued to change as the train moved. He could see his reflection in the glass… His face was pale and his eyes were wide with fear in them, cold sweat rolled down his face.

"Hey, Seth," Ed called as the boy continued to gaze out the window, "you okay?"

He gazed at the world outside before his right hand moved on its own to grip his left arm tightly. His eyes narrowed dangerously and he gritted his teeth, _'…Alice…'_

Ed blinked and gazed at the boy's hardened expression. He was about to speak before sealing his mouth shut when he noticed something different about the dark haired boy. His teeth were sharp and similar to canine's fangs and his hands looked more like claws than hands by this point. He furrowed his eyebrows as he noticed the terrified look in the boy's forest green orbs, _'…What's wrong with this guy?'_ "Hey, Seth, you still with me?"

The boy blinked before looking back at Ed, "Uh, yeah… What was I-" he paled, "Ukh… I think I'm going to be sick…" he mumbled before passing out again while leaning against the side window.

Ed sweat dropped, _'…Yeah, I guess he's fine…'_

**Back with Roy**

The dark haired man narrowed his eyes as he continued to scan the rows of books and files. His eye twitched before he sighed in annoyance, "Maybe I should ask someone to organize these alphabetically," he said bitterly to himself. His fingers stopped once he spotted the file labeled _'Seth Lockhart'_. He smirked, "Good thing their files aren't separated."

He brought the group of files back to a table before he began reading through them. He narrowed his eyes, _'If I'm not mistaken, the military has more information on Seth than it does on Alice…'_ He looked up from the boy's files before pulling out his notebook and writing down the date, month, and year.

"_Your suspicious about Seth?" Roy asked the girl in absolute disbelief._

_She nodded as she crossed her arms over her chest and gazed out the window behind her desk, "There's something bothering him and he's not telling me, that's the real reason I'm going on this trip. I told him that I was going to check out some town up East, but I'm going back to our hometown to do a little investigation."_

_Roy blinked, "You have a theory?"_

_She narrowed her eyes and gazed down at her lap, "I do but, it's not really something I'd be proud of saying. I already feel horrible for doubting him in the first place." She looked up towards the man, "I'm pretty sure Edward and Alphonse are going to do something crazy again, and I'm almost certain that they'll be bringing Seth with them. During their absence," her eyes narrowed dangerously, "I want you to do some research on Seth's and my father's files. I'm sure they're still around somewhere…"_

He looked up and gazed towards the open window in front of him. The sun was beginning to set and the sky was painted in a mix of red, orange, and yellow. "A bond of distrust between those two of all people," he smirked, "I never thought I'd live to see the day."

**A/N: Well, now… That wasn't so bad, right?**

**Pumpbie: "So, you're nearing the part where you're going to tell Seth's secret?"**

**Purin: *hum* "Yeah but, am I making it too obvious? I think I am… If everyone already knows it then there's no fun in it anymore! TT_TT" *weep***

**Pumpbie: "Nice."**

**Purin: "Oh, that's right I almost forgot! Okay, I'm thinking on putting up a drawing of Alice I managed to make (after many failed attempts and Pumpbie's never ending nags). Now, is it better for me to make an account in devianART or just put it at my profile? Please answer everyone!"**

**Pumpbie: "I personally think you should just make an account."**

**Purin: "I know, you've already told me, remember?"**

**PLEASE REVIEW!**


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: Must update chapter… Must not give up…**

**Purin: "Finally!" *raises hand in accomplishment***

**Pumpbie: "Finally what?"**

**Purin: *giggles* "Well… I love Ed and Al's Master! She's AWESOME! That's why I'm excited to write about her!" *evil grin* "And what's more… This is when Greed shows up… Man, I love that guy! BWAHAHAHAHA! GREED RULES!"**

**Pumpbie: *bows* "I truly am sorry if my friend's oddity is disturbing anyone out there. Please don't mind her. I believe she was dropped when she was a baby."**

**Purin: "Why does everyone keeps saying that but no one will tell me the details?"**

**Pumpbie: "Please enjoy this Chapter!"**

**Purin: "Hey, I wanted to say that!"**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood!**

**Chapter 16**

"Hey, Brother."

Ed glanced to his side seeing Al scrunching closer to him but had his gaze locked straight ahead. He raised an eyebrow, "Yeah?"

"Have you noticed," he looked at his brother, "that Seth seemed paler these days?"

Ed blinked, "Isn't it because of his motion sickness?"

"Well, yeah there is that but," he looked back towards the dark haired boy now standing in front of one of the fruit sellers, "I just noticed when we got here that, he seemed generally paler and it seems even clearer under the sunlight."

"Hmmm… Maybe he's sick?"

The two looked back straight ahead and saw Seth was having a nice conversation with the seller lady, putting on a fake yet bright and sincere looking smile as the two laughed. Seth stepped back a bit and Ed raised his eyebrows slightly, he did seem paler. He looked a bit like someone who's supposed to be bed ridden, though his expression didn't seem like one at all.

Ed furrowed his eyebrows, _'Well… He does seem paler…'_ he narrowed his eyes and gazed down at the boy's wrists, _'…and his wrists are smaller. You can't really tell whether he's lost weight or not in the clothes he's wearing at the moment… Plus he's been acting strange these days.'_ Ed hummed, "Well, if he is sick, he'll probably show it or tell someone about it."

"Y-Yeah, I guess he will…"

Seth nodded to the woman and took a basket from her that's been covered with a piece of cloth before making his way back to the two brothers. He raised his eyebrows slightly when he saw the looks they were giving him, "Is something wrong?"

The two looked at each other for a moment before looking back at the boy. Ed scratched his cheek slightly, "Uh… Seth, are you feeling alright? You're not sick or anything, are you?"

Silence fell between the three as they gazed at each other, a very awkward silence for them… Very awkward indeed…

Seth blinked, "What?"

"W-Well, we were just worried since you seem a bit paler lately and kind of not acting like yourself, t-that's all!" Al stuttered nervously.

It was true that Seth hasn't been acting like himself lately, and this doesn't go unnoticed by others. He wouldn't barge in on people anymore and he'd actually knock on doors for once in his life. He's been doing almost anything and everything anyone asked him to. He doesn't add any comical or annoying comments whenever he spoke to anyone anymore.

He's also been a lot quieter and less hyper. He seems to be lacking his eating and he often works until late at night and coming in early, working like there's no tomorrow. He's been distancing himself from others slightly, even if it's barely visible. Plus, he hasn't been mocking Ed or trying to mess with him, even though there's been hundreds of open chances for him to insult him all he wants.

The boy gazed at the two as if they had just told the weirdest joke in history and kept up the silence which seemed to not bother him, but was clearly killing the insides of the two brothers. And then, when the two thought he couldn't be acting any weirder…

He smiled genuinely with a soft look in his eyes, "Oh, that, I've just been thinking about something important that's all." He looked to the side and rubbed the back of his neck, "I guess it's been preoccupying my mind."

"…Something important? What kind of important business would someone like you have?" Ed pointed out, hoping to get a usual reaction from Seth.

He chuckled, "Well, what would you know? After all…" He looked back at the boy and raised his hand. And before any of them could make another sound, he placed his hand on Ed's head and ruffled his hair in a brotherly manner. He grinned and tilted his head, "You're just a shrimpy little brat."

Ed blinked and gazed at the boy and after a short moment of silence…

"WHO THE HECK ARE YOU CALLING A SHRIMPY BRAT?"

**Later in Izumi's House**

Izumi sighed and placed a hand over her face, "Along 3rd Avenue…" Ed and Al blinked. She growled and cracked her knuckles, "There's a coffin store so get ones that'll fit your sizes!" She glared at them with such intensity the look itself might have been more than enough to rip the souls out of their bodies.

Ed and Al shuddered.

After a moment Izumi sighed and leaned back against her chair, "Well, enough jokes… And after I told you repeatedly not to do Human Transmutation, you still did it anyways…" The two hung their heads. She sighed again, "Both the master and apprentices suffering the same fate, oh boy…"

Ed furrowed his eyebrows, "So Master… You too as well?"

She narrowed her eyes and gazed down at her lap before gently placing a hand over her stomach, "My organs… A lot of them were taken away from me…" She looked up, "…You two… Are idiots."

The two looked down in shame, "Sorry…"

"Morons!"

"Sorry…"

"Ignorant!"

"We are…"

"Stupid apprentices!"

"We really are…"

"SHRIMP!"

"…Y-Yeah… That too…"

She paused and her gaze seemed to soften, "…It was painful… Wasn't it?"

Ed blinked as he gazed into his master's eyes, and saw that they were filled with past pain and concern towards him and his brother. He looked away and rubbed the back of his neck, feeling a bit uncomfortable at the sudden change of personality, "Well, we were the ones asking for it. And I guess _painful_ isn't exactly the best word to describe it…"

The room fell in silence for a moment before Izumi pushed herself to a stand. She walked closer towards the two and scrunched down, "You two…" She placed a hand on both their shoulders before tugging them forward gently and pulling them into a hug, "…You don't have to push yourselves."

The two stiffened in their master's warm and, surprisingly, soothing hug. Ed furrowed his eyebrows and the two buried their heads in Izumi's shoulders.

"…Sorry…"

"…Please forgive us…"

"…We're so sorry…"

"…It's alright." She sighed and let the two go, "Now then," she glanced back to see Seth standing next to Sig. He inwardly smiled and waved at her. She looked back towards the two brothers and point a finger at the boy, "He's a friend of yours?"

The two exchanged looks before looking back at their master, "Yes?"

Izumi blinked, "I see…"

**Meanwhile with Roy**

"Everything and anything there is to know about Seth and Alice," Roy answered with a monotonous tone.

Riza kept herself composed, "Isn't that a bit drastic? I mean their father's files aren't exactly the best source of information, is it?"

"But it's more reliable than their own," he added flatly. "Besides," he held up his face with one hand as he gazed numbly to the stack of documents next to him, "Dr. Lockhart only have two children. When I checked the dates placed on his files and the ones on their files… They didn't add up."

"So you're saying there's a possibility…" Riza trailed off and allowed the dark haired man to continue her sentence.

He sighed, "That they've been keeping more secrets than we thought. Who knows?" he glanced at the woman with a smirk.

She narrowed her eyes slightly, "But why would they need to do that?"

He shrugged, "They're hard to read. But if there's one thing I know, once you're in the army, some things are easier to acquire." His smirk widened, "That kind of reminds of a certain pair of troublesome brothers we have in the army as well."

**Later that Night**

Seth gazed up the sky numbly. His thoughts were far off somewhere and he certainly had the expression to show that. He sat with one leg laid on the roof while another was bent up, while his hands secured his position in place.

He pulled out his pocket watch and flipped it open, watching the little finger move in a continuous pace. He raised his hand and placed his palm on the carvings on the empty side of the watch.

He sighed and flipped the watch closed before shoving it back in his pocket. He gazed up once more and watch the stars, "It's so hard to please everyone…"

"Do you still have time to please yourself?" Seth smirked as he recognized the voice to be none other than Ed and Al's master.

The said woman sat down next to him, not bothering to ask if she could. She sighed and placed herself in a similar sitting position before looking up the sky, "Your name's Seth _Lockhart_, right?"

"Yeah… What about it?"

"I once met your father, when he was just accepted as a state alchemist." She smiled, "He seemed like such a nice man and very gifted as well. At least that's what he seemed to appear on a first sight…" she glanced at him from the corner of her eyes, "What do you think of him?"

He shrugged, "He seems like a bastard to me in every point of view. I was just too much of an idiot to see it when I was younger." He smirked, "But I am his son, and recently I've been turning more and more like him."

Izumi gazed at the boy with a skeptical look, trying her best to read the boy's expression, "How old are you exactly?"

He looked at the woman and grinned, "How old do I look?"

**The Next Day**

"_**Seth? Well, I can't say I'm all that surprised to hear from you,"**_ it was a male voice that answered, _**"though I'm more surprised to the fact that you know where I am… And how to contact me…"**_

"Alice was already looking for you, so I took a peek at her notes," he answered lightly as he leaned against the wall behind him.

"…_**I'm more concerned if Alice minded or not."**_

"Don't worry about it. If she kills anyone, it'll probably be me. And it's not exactly this is the first time I've kept a secret from her," he reminded the man. He smiled, "Listen, I need to ask you a question, a very important one."

There was a slight pause, _**"Is your body acting up again?"**_

"Yeah…" a trail of pain was clear in his voice.

"_**Hmmm, then I guess she might won't need to worry about killing you at all."**_

"Thanks for the support…" Seth sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, "I think I'm really pushing my luck this time. I'm going to have to tell her the truth soon."

"_**Personally? That doesn't seem like something you'd do."**_

"No, not personally." His gaze softened slightly, "That's why I was wondering… If it was alright that I passed the message to Edward and Alphonse."

"_**Why those two of all the choices in the world?" **_the man asked with a bewildered tone.

"Because they both managed to bond with her without that much trouble and," he smirked, "I heard that they're both also looking for the _truth_."

The man on the end of the line turned quiet for a minute, _**"…Do as you think is best. Just don't leave with regrets, alright?"**_

He smiled again, "Thanks, I'll see you later, okay?" He hung up before he could receive a reply. He looked back straight ahead and gaze at the sun, the bright color was reflected in his forest green orbs, "…Or maybe not."

He walked towards the window and saw the sun had began to set behind the horizon. He sighed and leaned against the wall, crossing his arms over his chest. He looked down towards his palm.

'…_Don't leave with regrets…' _His gaze softened,_ '…Wonder if _he_ had regrets…'_

"_ALICE!"_

_Seth gazed at his father with wide eyes as the black arms began to form from the ground. His father merely laughed and ignored the arms that were climbing up his limbs, his body beginning to fade away with each passing seconds._

_Seth furrowed his eyebrows as he tried to reach out for the man, feeling the sudden numbness climbing up his feet, "Father… What did you-?"_

_The man looked at him as a dark smile curled up his lips, "What's wrong Seth? You're shivering… Come now. This isn't the first time you've seen this, is it?" he ended his sentence with a chuckle._

_Tears began to form at the sides of the boy's eyes. After a moment, all form of sadness and despair disappeared from Seth's eyes and was replaced by hatred, pure hatred, "I thought you said you weren't going to do this anymore!"_

_His chuckles grew louder._

"_You told me…" he gritted his teeth and slammed his fists to the blood stained floors, "…You told me that I was going to be your last experiment! You promised you wouldn't do anything to Alice!"_

_His father stopped laughing in an instant. The man looked back at his son, by now all that's left of his body was his neck up. He gazed at the boy and the deep hatred carved in his eyes, hatred towards him. "Seth…"_

_The boy narrowed his eyes as his father's neck began to disappear._

"_Seth…" His father's mouth moved and what he said brought a sudden wave of fear to wash over the boy._

_His body began to disappear completely and all that's left in the room was complete and utter darkness. Seth's body began to tremble harshly and he clawed the floor beneath him, his nails digging into the ground beneath. He bit his lip so hard until blood began to drip from his lips._

"_You bastard…" He looked up with narrowed eyes, "I SWEAR I'LL GET YOU FOR THIS!"_

'_Even to the last moments of his life… All he cared about was his experiments. And after all these years, she still believes in him.'_ He sighed, _'Everything's turning more complicated. I can't follow all of this…'_

**Somewhere**

"I… Also want to know my secrets," Al mumbled as he gazed at the group in front of him.

"In that case, we'll get straight to the point," said the man with long grey hair, "come with us and you might learn what you want to know."

"Ummm, but…" Al paused and thought as he rubbed the back of his neck, "My master always told me not to follow strangers anywhere."

The group sweat dropped and an awkward silence was built around the four like a thick blanket.

"…How old are you exactly?" another man with spiky black hair asked as he gazed at the boy.

"14."

"You're 14 now." The man raised a finger so he could clarify his point, "See, a 14 year old should be able and allowed to think and act on their own free will. You don't have to rely on your master's orders all the time," he said with a light tone.

Al thought about the man's words for a moment before he perked up, "That's right! That means I can make my own decisions!"

He nodded with a smile, "That's right! So you can come with us-"

The man fell back as he was kicked in the face by a metal foot. He dropped to the ground and winced as Al stood before him with his shadow hovering above him. "I've decided… That I'm going to beat the answers out of all of you," Al said as he gestured towards the group.

The grey haired man narrowed his eyes before sighing deeply. He stood from his perch, "Well, looks like we don't have any choice but to use force then."

**A/N: Concentrate…**

**Purin: "Hmmm…"**

**Pumpbie: "Hmmm…"**

**Purin: "…I wonder when I'm going to update again…"**

**Pumpbie: "Better be soon though."**

**Please Review!**


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